Gone
by Lori2279
Summary: When the tough got going Kim got gone. Updated 1115 and that's all she wrote folks! Hope you enjoyed the story. We liked writing it for you.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Gone  
  
Author: Lori & Patti- soap_queen@hotmail.com;PattiL61@aol.com Classification: AU/Romance(eventually)  
  
Disclaimer: We own nothing. Nada. Zippo. Less then zippo.  
  
Distribution: FF.net and http://www.geocities.com/jersey_girl1/gonemenu.html. Anyone else ask.  
  
A/N: We miss Bobby.  
  
Feedback: Feedback is good.  
  
Ch 1  
  
"Hey, anyone know where Kim is?" Bobby Caffey asked as he walked into the kitchen of the firehouse.  
  
"Doc said she called in sick." Alex Taylor, a firefighter answered. "So looks like you're stuck riding with me for the day."  
  
"Lucky you." Carlos Nieto said, with a wry grin as Alex left to go get her gear. "Oh hey, I found this on the floor by your locker. Looks like someone has an admirer." He handed over an envelope.  
  
"Sure it's for me?"  
  
"Has your name on it."  
  
"Carlos, let's go!" Doc called.  
  
"Coming." He yelled. "See ya later Bobby."  
  
"Later." Bobby stared at the writing on the envelope. It was Kim's handwriting. This could not be good. He opened it up and read it silently.  
  
"Hey Bobby? You ready?" Alex asked, coming back in. "Bobby? Hey. You okay?"  
  
He looked up. "Huh? What? Yeah I'm fine. Where's Doherty?"  
  
"Jimmy? He's not due back till tomorrow." She noticed the paper in his hand. "Bad news?"  
  
"Something like that. We gotta make a stop." He said shoving the piece of paper in his pocket. "Let's go." He practically ran out of the room.  
  
"Okay." Alex followed him.  
  
hr  
  
"Kim, are you sure about this?" Catherine Zambrano asked her daughter as they waited for the train.  
  
"Mom, it's the only way."  
  
"It is not the only way. Tell Jimmy. Let him help deal with it."  
  
"He just got married. I am not gonna ruin that for him." Kim said.  
  
"No, you're just going to kidnap Joey and take him somewhere where no one knows you."  
  
"Ma, I told you. It's not kidnapping. Jimmy can't do anything legally to make me bring Joey back."  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Positive." Kim tried to smile but it didn't quite reach her eyes.  
  
"I worry about you." Catherine said.  
  
"Me too."  
  
"Kim."  
  
"Mom, we'll be fine." Kim looked next to her where Joey was sitting quietly. He was sleepy and a little confused about what they were doing. She put an arm around him and kissed the top of his head.  
  
"What else do you have planned?"  
  
"I managed to straighten out my credit transfer. I start school in January over the internet because by then I'll be very pregnant."  
  
"I still don't like the idea of you going somewhere you'll have no friends or family around you."  
  
"I promise to call a lot. And thank you for helping out with the apartment."  
  
"When you're done with school, then what?"  
  
"Chicago. A friend that used to work at Mercy has a job at Cook County Hospital. She's gonna help me get a job."  
  
"Call me when you start looking for a place to live out there. I have a friend in real estate there. She can help you out."  
  
"Thanks Mom." Kim said and then looked up when a garbled announcement came over the P.A. "That's us." She nudged Joey a little. "C'mon Sweetheart. Time to go." They stood up and Kim hugged her mom. "Tell Melanie to give my landlord a call if she wants the apartment."  
  
"I will." Catherine said before she hugged Joey. "You be good, okay?"  
  
"I will." Joey said sleepily.  
  
Catherine straightened back up.  
  
"Tell Bobby I'll call him when I can if he comes around."  
  
"And Jimmy?"  
  
"There's a letter in the top drawer of the dresser in my old room. Give it to him."  
  
Catherine nodded. She gave Kim one more hug. "Be careful."  
  
"I will. I promise." Kim took Joey's hand and they boarded the train.  
  
hr  
  
"Bobby? What are we doing here?" Alex asked.  
  
"Stay here. If we get a call, come get me. If not I'll be right back." Bobby got out of the rig before Alex could utter a word.  
  
"Okay." She said to herself quietly. She waited silently and Bobby came back out about ten minutes later. He got into the rig and silently pulled out into traffic.  
  
"Bobby?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Are you okay?"  
  
"Peachy." He said in a hard voice.  
  
"Whose apartment was that?"  
  
"Kim's."  
  
"How's she feeling?"  
  
"I don't know. She wasn't there."  
  
"What?"  
  
"She wasn't there. Neither was Joey. And to top it off, none of their things were there either."  
  
"Oh." Alex said quietly. "Do you think this has something to do with the note you got this morning?"  
  
"Yeah. The note was a good-bye."  
  
"Wait. She took off with Joey? Jimmy's gonna go ballistic."  
  
"Tell me something I don't know."  
  
"Can you think of anyone who might know where she went?"  
  
"Her mother and her sister. Maybe her sister. They don't get on so well since Melanie slept with Jimmy."  
  
"Jeez, Jimmy sleeps with everyone doesn't he?"  
  
"He's trying." 


	2. Chapter 2

Ch 2  
  
Next Day.  
  
Jimmy came strolling into the firehouse with a big smile on his face in a great mood. He had just returned that morning from his honeymoon with Brooke in the Bahamas.  
  
"Jimmy! We just got done cleaning up the flowers from the wake," joked D.K.  
  
"What wake is that?" asked Jimmy, alarmed at who may have passed away while he was gone.  
  
"The one for your bachelorhood. All the neighborhood women showed up. What a mess. Tears everywhere," D.K. finished as the whole squad started laughing, including Jimmy.  
  
Doc and Carlos were just returning from a run and walked into the kitchen. They greeted Jimmy and Carlos shook his hand. "So, details. I need details, Doherty," said Carlos.  
  
"Carlos, you couldn't handle the details," Jimmy replied as he followed Doc out into the TV room.  
  
"Doc, hold up," called Jimmy. Doc turned around and Jimmy said, "I've been trying to reach Kimmy since I got home this morning to say hi to Joey. I'm getting a message that her phone is no longer in service. Do you know what's going on?"  
  
Doc looked at him with a surprised look on his face. "What? You mean she didn't tell you?"  
  
"Tell me what, Doc?" asked Jimmy, becoming somewhat annoyed.  
  
"Jimmy, Kim quit. She quit without giving notice and the last I heard was that she was moving," Doc told him.  
  
"Quit?! Moving?! You're kidding me right Doc?" asked Jimmy, not believing what Doc was saying.  
  
"No I'm not kidding, Doherty. She left me in the lurch with no one to fill her position," answered Doc.  
  
"What the..?" said Jimmy as he quickly left the room. "D.K., tell the boss that I've gotta take some personal time. Dan, can you cover me for a couple of hours?" he said to Dan Jones who was just getting off his shift. Dan looked at Jimmy's face and knew something important was going down.  
  
"Sure Jimmy. No problem," Dan answered.  
  
"Thanks," called Jimmy as he ran out of the firehouse.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
A banging on her front door startled Catherine Zambrano. She walked over and looked through the peephole to see an angry Jimmy Doherty on her front steps.  
  
"Here we go," she sighed to herself as she opened the door. "Jimmy! Welcome back. How was your trip?" she asked trying to delay the inevitable.  
  
"Catherine, don't start with me. Where is she?" demanded Jimmy.  
  
"She's gone Jimmy," answered Catherine.  
  
"Gone where? Don't mess around here, Catherine. I want to know where Joey is," he said, raising his voice.  
  
"I don't know where she went," Catherine lied. "But, I know that Joey is okay."  
  
"How could you let this happen?" Jimmy said to her.  
  
"Me!? Me let this happen!?" exclaimed Catherine. "I'm not the one who made her think things were going to work out between the two of you. I'm not the one that slept with her and then married Brooke anyway! You have only yourself to blame for this Jimmy Doherty. Only yourself!" she answered him angrily.  
  
"Wait here," she said as she walked down the hall to Kim's old bedroom. She got an envelope out of the dresser drawer and returned to the living room with it, handing it to Jimmy. "She left this for you. I didn't read it," she added as an afterthought.  
  
Jimmy opened the envelope and read the letter. His eyes filled with tears as he realized that he might never see his son again. He looked up at Catherine and said, his voice shaky, "Catherine. She can't do this. She can't take my son away from me. I never meant to do anything to hurt her. Things just happened," he said, trying to convince himself more than Kim's mother. A tear escaped down his cheek and Catherine started to usher him to the door.  
  
"Please, Catherine. You have to convince her to come back with Joey. I can't not be a part of his life," he pleaded.  
  
"Jimmy, I'll only tell you that I'll talk to her when she calls. I don't know when that will be, but I will let you know how Joey is," she assured him as he stepped out and she shut the door. She turned and leaned back against the door, not able to look through the window to see how devastated Jimmy was. Whatever else, he was a good father to Joey and she knew that it was killing him that he may never see the boy again. She didn't totally agree with what Kim was doing, but she could understand it also.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy went by Kim's apartment and found that her sister Melanie was now living there. After grilling her, he realized that she didn't know where Kim was either.  
  
He returned to the firehouse and found Bobby in the back of the rig restocking supplies.  
  
"Bobby," Jimmy said. Bobby turned around recognizing Jimmy's voice.  
  
"Where is she?" Jimmy asked him, sounding defeated.  
  
"Jimmy, I don't know. I swear. She just left me a note saying that she was leaving and not to worry about her. I tried to find out from Melanie and her mom, but they said they didn't know," he said sadly.  
  
"She can't take Joey away from me," Jimmy said simply. "She can't do it."  
  
Bobby put a hand on Jimmy's shoulder in a show of sympathy. He didn't agree with everything that Jimmy did, but he was basically a good person and he knew that he loved his son. "I'm hoping she calls me. If she does, I'll try to talk to her, Jimmy," he said as Jimmy walked back into the firehouse to call Brooke. 


	3. Chapter 3

Ch 3  
  
Melanie Zambrano sung to herself as she hung up some clothes in the closet. Just as she went for another shirt the phone rang. She said a quick prayer that it wasn't Jimmy or Bobby and picked it up.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hey Mel."  
  
"Kim! Hey how are you? Where are you?" Melanie knew her mother knew where Kim was but neither had told her.  
  
"New apartment. I tried calling Mom to check in but I just got the machine so I called you to check in."  
  
Melanie made herself comfortable on her bed. "Yeah? Any special reason?"  
  
"No. Well Mom left some messages on my machine. I figure it was about Jimmy. He got back yesterday right?"  
  
"Yeah and he's visited me and Mom so far. He's really upset Kimmy."  
  
Kim pushed away the little niggling sensation of guilt before she spoke again. "How's my apartment working for you?"  
  
"Not bad." Melanie wisely chose not to make Kim talk about Jimmy. "Bigger closet space anyway. But I think I might invest in a roommate for Joey's room."  
  
"That's probably a good idea." Kim said. "Bobby been by?"  
  
"Yeah. This morning. He woke me up. He is really worried about you."  
  
"What time is it there?"  
  
"Uh it is five after one. Jet lag?"  
  
"Train lag. Mel, I'm gonna call Bobby."  
  
"Good idea. Can I get your phone number? I promise to call once a week and check up on you and Joey."  
  
Kim snorted. "That's my line, but yeah. Got a pen?"  
  
"Uh, one sec." Melanie found a piece of paper and a pen. "Okay shoot."  
  
Kim rattled off a number and then said good-bye.  
  
hr  
  
Bobby looked up when the phone rang. Deciding he didn't feel like playing another round of twenty questions with Jimmy, he let the machine pick up.  
  
I"Hey I'm not home right now. Leave a message./I  
  
Beep!  
  
"Bobby? It's me, Kim. You there?"  
  
Bobby shot across the room and grabbed the phone. "Kim?"  
  
"Hey. Thought I missed you."  
  
"Where are you?"  
  
"Bobby."  
  
"Kim."  
  
"I can't tell you."  
  
"Kim, we're friends. We were partners."  
  
"I know."  
  
"I'm not gonna rat you out to Jimmy if that's what you think."  
  
"Bobby of course not. I just need to do this on my own and the more people that know the better chance Jimmy has of finding out."  
  
"He's worried sick you know. I heard him on the phone with Brooke about putting out an APB on you and Joey. He's gonna charge you with kidnapping."  
  
"He can't."  
  
"What do you mean he can't?" Bobby asked, confused.  
  
"I mean the agreement we have was from when we were separated. It expired about two days after Jimmy left on his honeymoon. I have sole custody now. Jimmy can't make me bring Joey back."  
  
"Oh boy." Bobby rubbed his hand over his face. "Kim, are you sure?"  
  
"I checked it out with a lawyer. Jimmy got a notice sent to him about four days ago. It should be in his mail at his apartment."  
  
Bobby groaned. That piece of news was not going to go over well.  
  
"Bobby, I gotta go."  
  
"Do I get a phone number?"  
  
"No. Sorry. I'll call again soon. Love you."  
  
"You too." Bobby hung up the phone.  
  
hr  
  
Brooke watched her husband sit on the couch with his head in his hands. She shook her head and frowned. She knew Kim still harbored feelings for Jimmy but she didn't think they ran to the extent of wanting him to suffer like this. She continued going through the mail but stopped when she came to an envelope with the return address of Family Court of New York State. It was addressed to Jimmy.  
  
"Jimmy? Did you see this?"  
  
"See what?" He asked lifting his head.  
  
"This." She walked over to him and handed him the envelope.  
  
He took it and tore it open. His eyes devoured the words. "Oh my God."  
  
"Jimmy?" Brooke asked, concerned.  
  
"She certainly covered all the bases." He laughed without humor.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Kim. This is to inform me that the agreement she and I had concerning Joey is now null and void and that she has sole custody."  
  
"But that means-"  
  
"That I can't do anything to make Kim bring Joey home." Jimmy shut his eyes. "I'm never gonna see him again."  
  
Brooke didn't say anything. She just put her arms around Jimmy. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4  
  
It had been three weeks since Kim had moved to Ohio. Bobby knocked on Melanie's door. He knew that she was sick of seeing him, but he couldn't just let Kim go. He loved her. He was worried about her. She had tried to shrug off Jimmy's marriage to Brooke, but Bobby knew how much she was hurting. He saw the way she looked at Jimmy every day at the station, at every call, at every ballgame that Joey had.  
  
Melanie looked through the peephole and just sighed. She didn't know whether she should even open the door anymore. If it wasn't Bobby, it was Jimmy. She couldn't tell them, she promised Kim, but she hated seeing them so upset. Bobby was the best thing Kim could have found, if only she would realize it.  
  
Melanie had spoken with Kim last night and told her that Jimmy and Bobby had been relentless in their efforts to find her. She tried to reason with Kim and tell her that it really wasn't fair to Jimmy - or Joey for that matter - to keep him away from his son. Kim said she hated hurting Jimmy, but she had to get away - start fresh somewhere else.  
  
Bobby must have sensed her presence near the door, because he knocked again and quietly said, "Please Mel. Please open the door."  
  
Melanie opened the door and stood to the side so Bobby could come in. "C'mon in, Bobby. There's fresh coffee in the pot and I bought some bagels last night in anticipation of either you or Jimmy showing up this morning," she said with a sarcastic grin on her face.  
  
"You know, Mel, if you just tell me where she is I'll stop bothering you," Bobby said, trying to convince her to give in.  
  
"Bobby, if I knew I would tell you," she said. "She did call me last night and I can tell you that she sounds fine. She said Joey's doing great in school and even joined the flag football team at school," she said cheerfully.  
  
"Great. What school is that?" Bobby said trying to trick her into revealing information she just didn't have.  
  
"Nice try, Caffey, but you struck out. I'm telling you that I honestly don't know where she is. I only know that she's safe and she seems happy."  
  
Bobby shook his head as he reached for a bagel. "Look, I need to finish getting ready for work, but help yourself to coffee. Cream cheese is in the fridge," Melanie said as she walked into her bedroom.  
  
Bobby opened a few drawers looking for a knife to spread the cream cheese. In one drawer was a personal telephone book, opened to "k." He looked over his shoulder to make sure that Melanie wasn't coming out of the room and then looked down to scan the pages. He came across an entry that just read "K.Z.," followed by a phone number. He pulled a pen from his pocket and wrote the number on his hand. He closed the drawer at the same time he heard Melanie coming back into the room.  
  
"Look, Mel. I'll pass on the bagel today. I gotta get to work," he said as he hurried to the door. "Next time you talk to Kim, please tell her to call me. I only heard from her that one time."  
  
Melanie nodded and closed the door behind Bobby as he hurried down the stairs. She finished getting her things together; turned off the coffee pot and radio; grabbed her purse and keys and headed out to work, locking the door behind her.  
  
******************  
  
Kim was walking Joey home from school. She had finished her day's work at her job at the corner grocery and she had time to help him with some of his homework before the she had to hit the books herself. She had a paper that she had to e-mail tomorrow and needed to put the finishing touches on it.  
  
"So, how was school today?" she asked Joey as they walked down the street. Joey had his schoolbag thrown over his shoulder and Kim had a bag with some groceries in it for dinner.  
  
"Okay, I guess." He said, not looking at Kim.  
  
"Joey? Is something wrong, honey?" she asked him gently, stopping so that he would stop and look up at her.  
  
"Mom? Why did we have to move here?" he asked her again. It seemed that he asked her that question daily. "Why can't I call Dad?"  
  
"Honey, I explained all that to you. I needed a fresh start. Things weren't going anywhere for me in New York. We'll call Dad soon. I promise. He's just really busy with work and with Brooke right now, but soon, I promise," she said as she put her hand on his back and they slowly started walking again, reaching the steps to their building and walking up into their apartment.  
  
She had noticed that he had been looking at her a little funny lately and she caught him staring at her again. She followed his line of sight to her stomach. "He must be noticing that I'm showing. Now is as good a time as any, I guess," she thought to herself.  
  
"Joey, can you sit down here for a minute? I need to talk to you about something," she said, motioning for him to sit down in the chair across from her. He sat down, sensing that something serious was coming.  
  
"Honey, I know that you don't understand a lot of what's been going on lately," she started. "But, I want to be as honest as I can be with you. You know that I wasn't feeling well for a while, right?" she asked him. He nodded his head remembering all the times he had heard her in the bathroom getting sick in the mornings.  
  
"Well, Mommy's going to have another baby in about three months," she said slowly, trying to gauge his reaction. "Would you like to have a little brother or sister to play with and 'show the ropes' to?"  
  
Joey looked at her with a surprised look on his face. He had always wanted a brother or sister, but he was confused as to how this had happened. "Doesn't there have to be a Daddy to have a baby?" he asked her with his eyes wide.  
  
"Not always, Joey. Sometimes Mommies have babies all by themselves and they grow up just fine," she assured him, wondering when he had learned that it took a man and woman to make a baby and not really wanting to get into that aspect of things with him.  
  
He seemed satisfied with that answer and started to fidget and Kim figured he had just about exhausted his attention span for a while. "I'll get dinner started," she said, tousling his hair as she walked past him to unpack the groceries. 


	5. Chapter 5

Ch 5  
  
"Hey Faith." Bobby shouted across the street when he saw the cop he was looking for.  
  
Faith Yokas looked up from her newspaper and smiled at the approaching paramedic. "Hi Bobby. What's up?"  
  
"I need a favor."  
  
"Okay." Faith nodded. She liked the good-natured medic and knew from gossip that he and Jimmy were worried sick about Kim and Joey. "What is it?"  
  
"Can you do a trace for me?" He held up a piece of paper. "I have a phone number but I don't know where the area code is to and I could use an address as well."  
  
"I'll see what I can do." Faith promised taking the piece of paper and looking at it. "Say, Bobby, just out of idle curiosity, this wouldn't be a clue to a certain paramedic that went AWOL a few weeks ago would it?"  
  
"It might. I found it in her sister's address book under the initials K.Z."  
  
"You're smart, I'll give you that. I wonder if Jimmy's thought of going through her sister's things."  
  
"It was an accident."  
  
"Uh-huh. Check back with me at the end of the shift." Faith smiled. "Ready Bos?"  
  
"Let's go." He said before he nodded at Bobby as a way of greeting him.  
  
"Bobby." Alex called from across the street. "We got a call. C'mon."  
  
"Coming. See ya later Faith. Thanks." Bobby headed back across the street.  
  
"No problem." Faith said as she got into the car.  
  
"Thanks for what?" Bosco asked.  
  
"Oh I said I'd do a trace on some phone number. He's looking for his brother and this was his first clue." Faith said. She didn't want word to get back to Jimmy about what Bobby had found unless Bobby was the one to say something.  
  
"Oh. Any word on Kim?"  
  
"Not yet as far as I know."  
  
Bosco nodded and started the car.  
  
hr  
  
Jimmy sunk another basket. The guys were upstairs watching a game but Jimmy just couldn't get into it. He couldn't get into anything lately. He went to sleep praying that the next day Kim would call and tell him where they were. But as the days went on the more futile that prayer seemed to him.  
  
And then there was the gossip flying around the house. Of course he didn't know if it could be considered gossip seeing as how it was true that he had screwed Linda, his friend's girlfriend, on a bathroom counter at his engagement party on the night before he married Brooke.  
  
"You're a screw-up Jimmy and now I have to find a way to protect my son from your endless crap."  
  
He closed his eyes as Kim's voice echoed through his head. Well she'd certainly found a way hadn't she?  
  
hr  
  
"Hey did you two hear what happened?" Carlos asked of Bobby and Alex as they met up outside a diner for their dinner break.  
  
"No. What happened?" Alex asked.  
  
"Lombardo wailed on Jimmy tonight. Linda told him about her and Jimmy doing it that night in the bathroom."  
  
"Get out." Bobby stared. "How's Jimmy look?"  
  
"Bad." Doc answered. "Really bad."  
  
"Man." Alex shook her head. "I guess now Brooke's the only one that doesn't know."  
  
"Wouldn't be to sure about that." Doc said. "I think Jimmy went home to come clean."  
  
"Really?" Bobby shook his head. "Maybe he really loves her."  
  
"No." Doc shook his head. "Men in love don't screw around with their friend's girl on a bathroom counter."  
  
Bobby nodded and everyone else just digested Doc's words in silence before an approaching Bosco broke the silence.  
  
"Hey guys. Hungry?"  
  
"Absolutely." Alex nodded and opened the door to the diner.  
  
"Oh hey Bobby, Faith went home for dinner. She said to give you this." Bosco dug a piece of paper out and gave it to him. "It's the information about your brother that you wanted."  
  
"Huh? Oh, right. Thanks." He unfolded it and read it silently. "Tell her thank you. I might not be at work tomorrow to tell her."  
  
"Yeah, no problem." Bosco went in, leaving Bobby alone on the sidewalk.  
  
"Ohio, huh? Hope you're prepared for a houseguest Kim." Bobby said softly to himself before he joined the others inside. 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6  
  
Alex came into the station and Doc was waiting for her.  
  
"Hey, what's up?" she asked cheerfully as she walked over to pour herself a cup of coffee.  
  
"Alex, Bobby's taking some time off, so we got a new guy coming over from the 5-3 to fill in for a couple weeks," Doc explained to her. "Do you think you can work with the guy, or do you want to ride with Carlos and I'll take him?" he continued, giving her the choice. Alex and Carlos had not gotten along that great in the past. They could work together if they had to, but Doc thought he'd give Alex the choice.  
  
"Why don't I take the new guy and you can KEEP Carlos," she said, sarcastically.  
  
"Okay, Alex. He should be here any time now. His name is Dan Anderson. From what I've heard he's pretty good and a little full of himself. I've advised him that you're senior on this bus and you call the shots though."  
  
"Ooohh, a challenge. Thanks Doc, just what I needed," Alex replied jokingly. "No worries, Doc. We'll be fine. Is everything okay with Bobby though?" she asked, wondering where he was taking off to on such short notice. He hadn't said anything to her about going away, and they had ridden every shift together since Kim took off.  
  
"Yeah, he called me last night and said that he got a call from a relative out of state that one of his uncles was pretty sick. They wanted him to come out and decipher the medical jargon being thrown at them or something. I guess that's what you get when you have a little bit of medical background," explained Doc.  
  
"Yeah, lucky him," replied Alex skeptically. She knew that he had been trying to find out where Kim went and wondered if he'd gotten a lead. "Did he say where he was going?" she asked Doc casually.  
  
"Nope, just said out of state and that he'd be back in a couple of weeks. I couldn't really deny him - he hasn't taken any time off in I don't know how long. He has vacation time piled up," he continued.  
  
Just then, they heard an unfamiliar voice coming through the firehouse. "Hello! Where is everyone?"  
  
"That must be Anderson," Doc said, getting up to go greet the substitute medic. Alex followed him out into the apparatus room and began the tour as Carlos walked in. Doc muttered to Alex, "This ought to be interesting - two medics full of themselves meeting. Stand back," and they both chuckled.  
  
Surprisingly, Carlos and Dan Anderson had hit it off and after the tour of the station and rigs, they were outside playing some basketball.  
  
"Aw, he followed me home, Mom. Can I keep him? Huh?" said Alex to Doc sarcastically.  
  
"Hey, as long as I don't have to break up any fights, I'm a happy man," Doc replied, flipping through his newspaper.  
  
**********************  
  
Bobby hailed a taxi from the Ohio airport and headed over to the address that Faith had given him. He looked at his watch, worried that it might be too early to knock on her door. It was just 7:00 a.m. "Better to catch her off guard, I guess," he thought to himself. He had caught the first flight out from JFK and was lucky enough to find a non-stop flight to Akron. He managed to catch a little sleep on the plane, but he was too nervous to get any serious rest.  
  
Finally, the cab pulled up outside of the address and Bobby looked out the window and up at the apartment building before him. He saw the front door to the apartment open and sunk lower in the seat as he recognized Joey coming out with this book bag slung over his shoulder. Right behind him, a pregnant woman followed him out, pulling the door shut behind her. Bobby looked closely at the woman and realized that it was Kim.  
  
"What?!?" he exclaimed, startling the cab driver.  
  
"Hey pal, I need $5.80," the cab driver replied.  
  
"Look, just pull around that corner and I'll get out," Bobby instructed, indicated the corner in the opposite direction that Joey and Kim were walking.  
  
"Whatever," sighed the cab driver and did as Bobby requested. "Okay, now it's $6.00 even."  
  
Bobby handed the driver $10.00 and told him to keep the change. He opened the door and grabbed his carry-on bag. The taxi pulled away and left Bobby standing there wondering what he should do next.  
  
He decided to try to follow Kim and Joey for a little while. He was sure she was bringing him to school, but didn't know if she would be returning home or going somewhere. He kept his distance and noticed the two of them joking back and forth. Then he heard that unmistakable sound, Kim's laugh. He loved that laugh and it made him smile despite his confusion at what he had seen. After a few minutes, he noticed that they had arrived at Joey's school. She leaned over and gave Joey a kiss good-bye despite Joey's protests at her kissing him outside of his school.  
  
Bobby heard Joey say, "Mooom!" as he pulled away and headed into the building.  
  
She called after him, "I'm not working today so I'll be at home. Hurry home, maybe if you get your homework done early enough we can get a movie or something!"  
  
"Okay," he called back to her and waved.  
  
Bobby hurried back to the apartment building and decided to wait across the street in the coffee shop for Kim to return. He sat a few tables away from the front window so that he could see, but far enough in the shop so that she wouldn't be able to notice him if she looked in. He watched her slowly walk back to the apartment. She opened the door and let it close behind her. Bobby got up and paid for his coffee. He walked out of the shop and headed across the street. He got there just as someone was coming out of the building and was able to catch the door before it closed and locked. He looked at the directory next to the mailboxes in the lobby of the building and found Kim's name. The apartment number was 4G and he started to look around. He figured out the numbering of the apartments and headed up to the fourth floor. He slowly walked toward 4G and paused outside the door. He could hear the clang of her washing dishes through the door. She had the radio on and was singing along to the music. He knocked on the door and soon heard her voice through the door.  
  
"Who is it?" she asked.  
  
"UPS. I have a delivery for a Kimberly Zambrano," Bobby said, disguising his voice slightly.  
  
"Um. Who's it from?" she asked, not expecting any deliveries.  
  
"It's from a Catherine Zambrano. Looks like an address in New York City," Bobby replied.  
  
"Just a minute," Kim said as she unbolted the door and slide the chain off the door. She opened the door and drew in a sharp breath, dropping the dish she was holding, as she saw Bobby standing before her.  
  
The dish crashed to the floor, shattering. 


	7. Chapter 7

Ch 7  
  
"Something smells good." Alex said as she walked into the kitchen. "Who's the chef?"  
  
"Me." Jimmy answered.  
  
"Your eye looks better."  
  
"Thanks Alex." He looked over her shoulder. "Hi." He said to the man he didn't know who was following Alex into the room.  
  
Alex looked. "Oh Jimmy, this is Dan Anderson from the 5-3. He's filling in for Bobby for a couple of weeks. Dan this is Jimmy Doherty, one of the firefighters."  
  
"Hey." Dan said. "I'll be right back Alex. Gotta hit the head."  
  
"Have fun." Alex took a seat at the round table and opened the paper.  
  
"Alex?"  
  
"Yeah?" She looked up. "What Jimmy?"  
  
"Where's Bobby?"  
  
"Doc said he had some kind of family emergency. One of his uncles or something out of state."  
  
"Really?" Jimmy said, a note of doubt creeping into his voice.  
  
"Yeah. Jimmy, what?" Alex said.  
  
"Nothing. He'd tell me if he had a lead as to where Kim and Joey are, right?"  
  
"You've known him longer then I have."  
  
"You've spent the past month or so riding with him. He hasn't said anything?"  
  
"No. But then I haven't been in a real hurry to bring it up." Alex admitted.  
  
"Right." Jimmy nodded. "I better go make my daily call to Melanie and Catherine."  
  
"Good luck." Alex said.  
  
"Thanks." Jimmy nodded as he left the room.  
  
Hr  
  
"Oh my God." Kim said.  
  
"Hi Kim." Bobby smiled.  
  
"Oh my God." She repeated.  
  
"How are you?"  
  
"Oh my God."  
  
"Can I come in?" He asked.  
  
"Oh my God." She said as she moved away from the door.  
  
Bobby took that as an invitation and stepped inside the small apartment. He recognized the clutter as Kim and Joey's belongings from the apartment in New York. As he closed the door Kim turned around. He stepped over the broken dish and stood still as she stared at him.  
  
"You're real right? I'm not having some kind of stress and exhaustion induced hallucination, am I?"  
  
"I could ask you the same question." Bobby said nodding towards her stomach.  
  
Kim nodded. "You're not."  
  
"Neither are you."  
  
"Right. So, who gave me up? Mom or Mel?"  
  
"Neither."  
  
"Then how?"  
  
"Wasn't easy. I had to get Melanie drunk and then I had to sleep with her. She gets rather amorous when she's drunk and she wasn't taking no for an answer. Anyway the next morning while she was asleep I went through her things and found the number for you."  
  
"What?" Kim stared at him.  
  
Bobby had to laugh. "I'm kidding. I went over to Mel's one morning and she had bought bagels in anticipation of Jimmy or me showing up. Anyway while she was in her room getting dressed I was looking for a knife for the cream cheese. I opened a drawer and her phone book was open to the K's. I saw an entry for K.Z. and I took a shot. I had Faith trace it for me."  
  
"Faith? Faith Yokas? The cop?"  
  
"Yeah. Look she won't go spreading the news around."  
  
"What about Bosco?"  
  
"He thinks the number was a lead on my brother."  
  
"Oh." Kim nodded.  
  
"So do I get some answers now?"  
  
"About what?" Kim stalled for time.  
  
"Kim."  
  
"Well as you can plainly see I'm pregnant."  
  
"Yeah now that you mentioned it, I thought you'd put on some weight. Wanna tell me about it?"  
  
"It's Jimmy's."  
  
"I figured. If it was mine you'd be in labor and delivery already."  
  
"And I wouldn't have left New York."  
  
"So why did you?"  
  
"Leave?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"I didn't want to wreck Jimmy's marriage. He deserves the chance to make a go of it with Brooke without having the problems that come along with getting a woman other then your wife pregnant."  
  
"You could've told me."  
  
"Almost did. I spent three hours crying my eyes out after I got a positive sign on that test. Then I picked up the phone and then I put it down and then I picked it up and then I put it down again. Then I got the mail. That's when I saw the notice."  
  
"Right." Bobby nodded. "Yeah, Jimmy didn't take the news too well. We had to get a new punching bag at the house."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yeah. So then what happened?"  
  
"I took that notice as a sign. A sign that it was time to go." Kim sat down in a chair and Bobby took the couch. "To be honest I was this close to calling Jimmy in the Bahamas to tell him before I saw that envelope."  
  
"You could've at least said good-bye or given Doc some notice."  
  
"No I couldn't. Saying good-bye would've been too hard and I couldn't be there when Jimmy got back. He knows me better then I'd like to admit. He'd know something was up. He's seen me pregnant before. Come to think of it so have you. I cried at the drop of a hat with Joey, you know that."  
  
"So is this permanent?"  
  
"No. This is just for school. Remember Maggie Simons?"  
  
"Sure. She was a nurse at Mercy."  
  
"I called her when I decided to leave New York. After I finish school she's gonna help me get a job in an ER in Chicago."  
  
"As?"  
  
"A nurse."  
  
"You went back to that?" Bobby asked, surprised.  
  
"Yeah. Its hours are a little better and they have a daycare at the hospital."  
  
"So you finish school and get a job and then what?"  
  
"Live my life."  
  
"In Chicago?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
Bobby nodded. "Okay."  
  
"Okay." Kim said. "What?"  
  
"I'm just thinking."  
  
"About?"  
  
"What happens now?"  
  
"You go back to New York and we keep in touch?" Kim smiled.  
  
"Or.."  
  
"Or what?"  
  
"We could get married."  
  
"Married? You and me?"  
  
"Yeah why not?"  
  
"Because it's not your baby. It's not fair to either of us to do something like that." Kim said quietly. "But I love you for asking."  
  
"Had to try, right?"  
  
"No, you didn't." Kim smiled.  
  
"Okay, I have another idea."  
  
"Okay."  
  
"I stay here. I get a job. I'll be your best friend just like always but in Ohio instead of New York."  
  
"What about your mom?"  
  
"She's got my sisters. She'll be okay."  
  
"Bobby you don't have to."  
  
"I want to." He looked her in the eye. "You don't have to be alone in this Kim. I'll be here."  
  
Kim leaned over and hugged him. "Thank you."  
  
"Anytime." Bobby whispered. 


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8  
  
The door to Kim's apartment opened at 3:15 p.m. Joey walked in and noticed the quiet first.  
  
"Mom?" he called, feeling a little anxious. Kim came in from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dishtowel. Joey smelled his mother's delicious spaghetti sauce cooking. She hadn't made that since before they had moved. She only made it when there were people around to eat it. She didn't like it to go to waste. "Maybe Dad's here," he thought, suddenly smiling and running past Kim into the kitchen.  
  
"Bobby!!" he exclaimed, jumping up on him and throwing his arms around his neck. Kim followed him back into the kitchen and leaned against the counter smiling.  
  
"What's up, Champ?" Bobby asked him, bringing him out into the living room to roughhouse. Bobby imagined that it had been quite some time since he had been able to do that and he remembered how much he loved it. Kim watched them from the doorway for a few minutes, realizing how much she had missed her friend and all the help he had always been with Joey. She turned and went back in to stir the sauce. She wanted to give Joey some time for some "man-to-man" talk.  
  
After both of them were totally exhausted, Bobby and Joey flopped on the couch and turned on the baseball game. Joey was rattling off statistics non-stop. After a few minutes, Bobby nudged Joey with his elbow and said, "So, Sport. How are you doing?"  
  
"Okay, I guess," Joey, said with sadness in his voice.  
  
"Doesn't sound like okay," Bobby prodded him. "C'mon, you can level with me, remember?"  
  
"I don't know. I guess I just don't understand why we had to come to Ohio. I miss you. I miss Grandma. I miss my friends. I miss my school," he paused and tears sprang to his eyes. "I miss my Dad," he finally said, letting the tears freely flow.  
  
Bobby moved a little closer to Joey and put an arm around his shoulder, pulling him close. "I know you do, Joey. I don't understand it all either yet. But, don't worry. We'll sort everything out and it'll all be okay."  
  
Kim had been listening from the doorway again and stood there, watching her son cry to Bobby. iWhy hadn't he opened up to me?/i she thought to herself as the buzzer on the stove sounded, indicating that the spaghetti was done cooking.  
  
She dried her eyes and cleared her throat. "Okay, Caffey. You know the drill. Get out here and test this pasta!"  
  
Bobby hugged Joey and they both ran out to the kitchen to do the testing. "Okay Joey, this is how we test to see if the pasta is truly done. You can't depend on some stinking timer! Good pasta cooks in its own good time," he explained as he pulled two strands of the spaghetti out of the pot and promptly threw them against the wall.  
  
"Bobby!" Kim yelled, slapping him in the arm.  
  
"If it sticks, is a no done yet," he said in a false Italian accent. "If it falls to the floor, it's EATS!" He finished instructing. "Now go wash your filthy mitts. What did you do, dig to China today at school?" he teased as he followed him to the bathroom to wash up.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy was sitting alone in a corner of Angela Boscorelli's bar, quickly drinking himself into a stupor.  
  
Bosco came in and came over to the bar. Before he got halfway across the room, Angela caught sight of her son and nodded in Jimmy's direction. She had called her son because he had told her some of what was going on and she noticed the depressed and angry look on Jimmy's face. He had started drinking the hard stuff immediately upon entering the bar and hadn't slowed down in the last two hours since she had called Bosco. Angela was both worried about the man and didn't want any trouble. He had the look of someone looking for a fight when he came in.  
  
"It's not pretty," Angela warned her son, handing him a beer, as he headed over in Jimmy's direction.  
  
"These things never are," he answered her back over his shoulder. "You should know that," he finished, referring to how many times she had dragged his drunken carcass upstairs to her apartment to sleep it off.  
  
Bosco didn't feel particularly friendly toward Jimmy, but he didn't want to see him this upset either. After all, they worked together at calls sometimes and he was really an okay kind of guy. He had pulled his butt out of more than one jam after he'd run into a burning building before the fire department arrived.  
  
He had heard through the grapevine known as Carlos about the break-up of his new marriage. He didn't have all the details, but he knew enough. He tried to think of a casual way to approach him, but as he saw the look on his face, he knew no matter what, it wasn't going to be easy.  
  
He slid into the booth across from Jimmy and it seemed as though he didn't even notice his presence. Bosco took a drink of his beer and set it on the table. "Drinking alone, or can anyone join in?" he finally said.  
  
Jimmy slowly looked up to see who was bothering him. He barely made out that it was Bosco, his drunkenness distorting his vision. "Bosco! What the hell do you want?" he said meanly.  
  
"Not a thing man," he answered. "Just happened to come in to see my Ma after work and noticed you were over here. So, what's bugging you?"  
  
"I'm sure you know. Carlos managed to spread the word to everyone," he said, discarding the glass he was drinking out of in favor of drinking directly from the bottle.  
  
"Yeah, well I take anything that guy says with a grain of salt. But, hey, it's none of my business. If you don't want to talk about it that's fine," Bosco said, starting to stand up.  
  
"She's gone," Jimmy said simply.  
  
"Excuse me?" Bosco responded, sitting back down.  
  
"I said, 'she's gone.' Brooke's gone. She packed her stuff and left while I was at work today. No chance to explain or make amends. She just split," he said, his words slurring.  
  
"Yeah, well. What did you really expect her to do, Doherty? She's hurt, and she's embarrassed. Maybe she just needs some time, you know," Bosco tried to suggest.  
  
"Nope! She's gone. She sent me papers today that she's trying to have the marriage annulled," Doherty continued, knocking the empty glass on the floor as he swept his arm through the air in front of him.  
  
The two sat in silence for a moment. Then Bosco said, "So, that's some shiner you got there. Did you have it looked at?"  
  
"Nah. This is from Lombardo. I deserve it. I deserve worse," he said miserably. "What the hell is wrong with me, huh Bosco? Why do I screw everything up?"  
  
"Only you can answer that one, my friend," Bosco answered. "But I know from experience that this isn't the answer," he finished; gesturing toward the near empty bottle Jimmy was gripping. "C'mon. Let me drive you home Jimmy," he offered, standing up.  
  
"No. I'm not ready to leave yet. I'm not numb enough yet," he said, throwing the empty bottle against the wall and signaling to Angela that he wanted another one.  
  
"Oh, yeah. You're ready to leave now Doherty. You can either make it easy or hard on yourself," said Bosco, standing up and grabbing onto Jimmy's arm. Jimmy shrugged off Bosco's grip and stood up, ready to fight. "Nah, you don't wanna go there, Doherty. You really don't," warned Bosco, ready for Jimmy to lunge at him. Doherty took a swing at Bosco, who managed to dodge the blow. To Bosco's surprise, Doherty recovered from the miss and swung again, this time catching Bosco with a glancing blow just above his left eye. Jimmy lost his balance and fell to the floor, unable to get up again. Bosco felt the blood begin to slowly trickle from the cut.  
  
Angela grabbed the bat she kept behind the bar and started to make her way around to help her son. Bosco saw her out of the corner of his eye as he wiped the blood away and put up his hand to stop her. She stopped, but stood ready to protect her son in the event that Jimmy tried to continue.  
  
Bosco leaned over Jimmy and determined that he was out cold. He looked around the bar and enlisted the help of some college-aged onlookers to help him carry Jimmy out to his car.  
  
He drove Jimmy home to his apartment. He was afraid to leave him alone in his excessive drunken state for fear he may choke or something. He managed to get him inside on his couch, laying him on his side and putting a garbage can in front of him. Jimmy awoke slightly, noticing his surroundings. "Just sleep it off, Jimmy. We'll figure things out in the morning," Bosco offered. Jimmy fell sound asleep and Bosco threw a blanket over him. 


	9. Chapter 9

Ch 9  
  
Kim closed the door to Joey's room quietly after she'd gotten him in bed. Bobby came out of the kitchen. "You didn't have to clean up you know."  
  
"Figure I should do something so you don't make me go to some rat trap motel." He grinned.  
  
"Like I'd do that. I'll bunk in with Joey. He has an extra bed. The couch is semi-comfortable. You should be fine."  
  
"I can sleep in there with him."  
  
"He's a light sleeper and you snore."  
  
"I do not."  
  
"Do too." Kim said. "You want some hot chocolate or something? I don't have coffee. Remove temptation and all that."  
  
"Right." Bobby nodded. "Do you have tea?"  
  
"Chamomile." Kim said.  
  
"I'll take the hot chocolate."  
  
"Okay." Kim nodded and went into the kitchen.  
  
Bobby sat at the little table. "He really misses Jimmy, huh?"  
  
"I know, I know, I know. I should tell Jimmy where we are or at the very least let Joey call Jimmy, but I can't."  
  
"Jimmy would wanna know Kim." Bobby said quietly. "He'd wanna know on all counts, especially now."  
  
Kim turned around and gave Bobby a look. "What do you mean?"  
  
"I have a feeling Jimmy's marriage ain't gonna be lasting too much longer."  
  
"Oh God, what happened?"  
  
"You know Lombardo's girl?"  
  
Kim thought for a second. "Linda?"  
  
"Yeah. Jimmy and her did it on the bathroom counter at the party the night before he married Brooke. Alex saw them and it went around the firehouse. It got to the point where the only people that didn't know were Lombardo and Brooke. Then Linda came clean and Lombardo cleaned Jimmy's clock. The day before I left, Doc said he thought Jimmy was gonna tell Brooke."  
  
Kim groaned, "Oh man. You know I knew Jimmy was slightly self-destructive but I didn't think he was stupid."  
  
"What do you mean? He cheated on you."  
  
"Yeah, but Bobby, I, unlike Brooke, don't carry a gun as part of my profession." Kim pointed out as she put down two mugs and sat down  
  
"You have a point." Bobby nodded and looked at his beverage. "No marshmallows?"  
  
"I'll pick some up tomorrow at work." Kim smirked. Then she studied him. "So, what are you gonna tell Doc?"  
  
"I'm gonna stall. I'll call him tomorrow and tell him that he might want to start looking for someone a little more permanent. Meanwhile, I'll start looking around here for a job and a place to stay. Don't say it. I can't stay here."  
  
"I know. I was going to say that there's an apartment for rent one floor up."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Not that I don't absolutely love you, but you'd never survive the third trimester hormones. It's not pretty. But at least now I have a Lamaze coach." Kim smiled.  
  
"Can't wait."  
  
hr  
  
Jimmy winced at the cheering in the next room. His head was pounding and his tongue felt like a layer of fuzz had been painted on it. He winced again when the phone rang. As he moved to get it, Doc entered and picked it up.  
  
"5-5... Hey Bobby. How's the family? . Really? Is this notice? .. A pre- notice? Okay . Hey, I hope it does turn out the other way. We'll be sorry to lose you. Feels like the family's breaking up .. Okay, yeah. I'll talk to you soon. Bye."  
  
"Everything okay Doc?" Jimmy asked.  
  
"That was Bobby. Looks like his family's situation is a little more dire then he realized so he might be staying down there."  
  
"Where's there?"  
  
"I think he said Miami." Doc shook his head. "Jeez first Kim, now Bobby. Is it the job that sucks, or is it me?"  
  
"It's you." Carlos remarked smartly as he walked in on the tail end of the conversation.  
  
"Funny kid. Let's see how funny you feel after this. I'm riding with Dan today, you're with Taylor."  
  
Jimmy had to smile at that one. He knew Alex and Carlos didn't get along. They'd probably cause a casualty rather then save one.  
  
"Doc." Carlos complained.  
  
"Have fun laughing boy." Doc said.  
  
Just then the fire alarm went off, causing Jimmy to wince.  
  
"Let's go." The chief yelled.  
  
"Time to go to work." Alex smiled. "C'mon Carlos. If I can deal you can."  
  
Carlos was still grumbling as he followed Alex to the bus. 


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10  
  
Two and a half months later....  
  
Bobby knocked on Kim's door, but no one answered. He had just finished his shift as a paramedic with the City of Akron. He was finally beginning to settle in. He still didn't know all the streets and all the shortcuts, but he had found a good friend in his partner, Leslie Manning. She wasn't bad to look at either and he felt the same "tension" that he always felt riding with Kim. They had all been out to ballgames and things together and Kim liked her just as much as Bobby. She'd said that Leslie reminded her of Alex Taylor from back home.  
  
He looked at his watch and noted that she should have been home from work a couple of hours ago and that Joey should have been home from school as well. Just as he was about to knock again, the door opened a crack and Bobby noticed Joey peering out from the door with a tear-streaked face.  
  
After realizing that it was Bobby at the door, Joey threw the door open and started talking at a high rate of speed - Bobby catching about every third word.  
  
"Whoa! Slow down, Champ. Start over, nice and slow. Where's your Mom?" Bobby asked quietly, trying to calm Joey down.  
  
"I don't know," Joey said, fresh tears springing to his eyes. "She wasn't here when I got home from school. I tried calling her work and they said that she left at her usual time. I don't know where else to check," Joey finished, his shoulders shaking as he began to sob. Bobby pulled the boy close and told him that everything would be all right.  
  
"Where's the number for Mom's work?" he asked Joey. Joey showed him and Bobby dialed the number. An older woman answered the phone.  
  
"Hi. My name is Bobby Caffey and I'm here with Kim Zambrano's son, Joey. Can you tell me what time Kim left work today? She hasn't come home yet," he explained, waiting for the woman to respond.  
  
"Oh dear. Well, let's see. She left at her usual time, 2:00. She always leaves at 2:00 so she can be home in time for her son when he gets home from school. But, it's 8:30 now. She should have been home hours ago," the woman said, worry in her voice.  
  
"Yes, she should have been here long ago. Did she seem okay at work today?" asked Bobby.  
  
"Well, she said that she wasn't feeling that great. She said the baby was really knocking her around today. I told her she could go home if she wanted, but she said that she could stay," the woman informed him.  
  
"Okay, thank you ma'am. If you hear from her could you please have her call home?" he asked her, trying to keep the worry out of his voice for Joey's sake.  
  
"Yes I will, young man. I hope everything is all right. She's such a lovely young lady," the woman said before hanging up.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
In the hours since Bobby had talked to Kim's work, Bobby and Joey walked the route that Kim took to and from work every day and found no sign of her or her things. He had returned to the apartment with Joey and decided it was time to call the police. He knew that they wouldn't do much if she hadn't been missing for 24 hours, but he thought that maybe since she was pregnant they would speed things up.  
  
While he was waiting for the police to get there, he decided to try calling the area hospitals. He didn't remember any calls coming over the radio today for any pregnancies, but who knows, maybe while he was out at another call.  
  
He had called two of the three area hospitals and then dialed St. Joseph's Hospital. The phone rang a few times and was finally picked up by the hospital operator. "St. Joseph's Hospital. How may I direct your call?" came the voice from the other end.  
  
"Yes, can I have the Emergency Room please?" asked Bobby. "One moment, Sir," came the response.  
  
A moment later, the phone was picked up by another woman, "St. Joseph's ER."  
  
"Yeah, could you tell me if you have a Kimberly Zambrano there, please?" he asked. "She is about 8 ½ months pregnant and she didn't come home from work today," he added.  
  
"Hold on just a minute and I'll check for you," said the woman before she put him on hold. A moment later she returned. "She was admitted from the E.R. to the ICU. Are you a relative?" she asked Bobby.  
  
"No, but I'm the closest thing she has here in Ohio. I'm on my way over. Can you let the ICU know in case she is asking for me, that Bobby Caffey is on his way and that her son Joey is fine and with me?"  
  
"I'll call them right now, Sir," answered the woman.  
  
"Thanks," he said and hung up. "Well, Joey. We found Mommy. She's at the hospital. What d'ya say we grab our coats and head over to find out what's going on?" he said, trying to lighten the tone a little so that Joey didn't worry anymore. 


	11. Chapter 11

Ch 11  
  
Jimmy frowned at the paper he was attempting to read. Attempting being the key word in that sentence. He'd read the same paragraph five times and it still wasn't sinking in.  
  
"Hey, Jimmy, you hungry? A bunch of us are ordering Chinese."  
  
"No thanks Alex."  
  
"You okay? You seemed distracted. More so then usual." The blonde asked with a tilt of her head.  
  
"You ever get the feeling that you were supposed to be some place but you didn't know where and you didn't know why you were getting that feeling?"  
  
"I don't think so."  
  
Jimmy laughed. "Thanks Alex. Hey, have you heard from Bobby?"  
  
"I got an email. He's doing okay. He hasn't heard from Kim though. I don't think Bobby left a forwarding address with anyone who might know where she is."  
  
"Like her mom or Melanie." Jimmy nodded.  
  
"Are you having any luck?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Maybe Kim will call. Don't lose hope, okay?" Alex said.  
  
"Thanks Alex."  
  
"Sure. See ya later." She headed back inside.  
  
Jimmy put down the newspaper and took out his wallet. He flipped open to a picture of Joey and Kim that had been taken about six months ago. He'd found it in Kim's locker when he'd cleaned it out at Doc's request. "Where the hell are you Kimmy?"  
  
hr  
  
After a quick stop to find out what floor ICU was on Bobby and Joey arrived at the nurses' desk.  
  
"Excuse me?" Bobby said to the nurse at the desk.  
  
"Can I help you?"  
  
"Hi. Yeah. Kimberly Zambrano. She was sent up from the ER."  
  
"Most our of cases are. One sec." She typed in something on the computer. "That's Z-A-M-B-R-A-N-O?"  
  
"Right."  
  
"She's down the hall. The doctors are assessing whether or not to do a c- section."  
  
"Is she awake?"  
  
"In and out. Are you family?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Husband?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Brother?"  
  
"Half-brother." Bobby said, shooting a quick look at Joey. He smiled up at Bobby and crossed his fingers.  
  
"Do you know if she's allergic to anything?"  
  
"No I don't think she is. Can I use your phone? I want to make a call."  
  
"Sure. Dial nine." She pushed the phone across the counter to him.  
  
"Thanks." Bobby said taking out a piece of paper and dialing the number on it.  
  
hr  
  
Melanie swallowed her soda and picked up the phone.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Mel? It's Bobby."  
  
"Hey. What's up?"  
  
"Kim's in the hospital."  
  
"What?" Melanie nearly dropped the phone. "Is it the baby?"  
  
"She's having some complications. They might have to take the baby by c- section. I think you and Catherine may want to come out."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. We'll be on the first plane. Bobby, tell Kimmy we love her."  
  
"I will." Bobby promised. "See you soon Mel."  
  
"Bye." Melanie hung the phone up and immediately started to dial her mother and pack at the same time.  
  
hr  
  
"Can I see her?" Bobby asked.  
  
"As soon as the doctors are done." The nurse promised. "But I'm afraid your young friend has to stay out here."  
  
"I wanna see Mom." Joey said adamantly.  
  
"I'm sorry-" The nurse began.  
  
"Let me." Bobby bent down so that he and Joey were eye level. "Hey, I know you're scared and you want to see your mom so that you know she's okay but you're not old enough. I promise to come out and tell you how she is and I think there's a window that you can look through." He looked at the nurse for confirmation on that. She nodded. "So I am gonna go see your mom and tell her that you're here and that you love her. Then I'm gonna tell her that your aunt Mel and grandma are on their way and that they love her. Then we're gonna see if maybe you're gonna get a new sister or brother. How's that sound?"  
  
"Will you give her a hug from me?" Joey asked very seriously.  
  
"Yeah. You bet." Bobby gave him a smile before he straightened up. He looked at the nurse.  
  
"Down the hall to your left. Room 503." She directed.  
  
"Thanks. C'mon champ." He took Joey's hand and they walked down the hall to Kim. 


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12  
  
After Melanie hung up from Bobby, she called the airport to book two seats on the next flight to Akron. Then she called Catherine to let her know what was happening. She told her to pack some things and that she'd be over in half an hour in a cab to leave for the airport. She was rushing around the apartment, throwing things into a bag - not sure how long she'd be gone. She looked around to see if she needed anything else when she heard the cat purr at her feet. She bent down and scooped up the kitten, "Sorry Barney, I almost forgot about you." She opened a can of cat food and put it in the dish on the floor and poured fresh milk in the other dish. She called her landlord who agreed to take care of the cat for her while she was gone.  
  
She made sure everything was turned off and opened the front door and almost slammed into Jimmy on her way out. She drew in a quick breath, startled and trying to think of something to say.  
  
"Jimmy, you scared me! What are you doing here?" she asked him; trying to stall for time to think of an answer to the question she knew was coming.  
  
"Where are you headed, Mel?" asked Jimmy, noticing the suitcase in her hand.  
  
"Uh, I'm on my way to meet some friends from work. We booked a cabin upstate for a few days. A girls' weekend," she said quickly. "Good thinking," she thought to herself.  
  
"Oh. I just wanted to stop by and see if you've heard from Kim," Jimmy said sadly.  
  
"C'mon down with me. I'm waiting for a cab," she said, closing and locking the door behind her. "I haven't heard anything, but I'm sure Joey's fine. I'm sure she'll call you soon Jimmy. She just needs some more time maybe," she assured him, not wanting to lose Kim's trust, but also feeling terrible about how Jimmy was feeling. He looked worse every time she saw him.  
  
His bruises had healed from the beating he took from Lombardo. He had a long talk with Melanie after the whole Linda/Lombardo/Brooke ordeal. She knew that Brooke had walked out. She knew that Jimmy had lost one of his best friends. She knew that Jimmy was getting more and more depressed about not seeing Joey for so long.  
  
"And you know that if anything was happening with Joey, she'd call you for sure," she said gently, putting an arm around his shoulders and giving him a hug. "Jimmy, are you okay? You look terrible. Are you eating or sleeping?" she asked him with concern.  
  
"I'm working a lot of overtime. You know, covering shifts for guys that are sick or want some time off. It's better if I keep busy." he was interrupted by the horn from the taxi that had pulled up to the curb.  
  
They both stood up from their seats on the steps. Melanie gave him a big hug. "Jimmy, please hang on. I'm sure you're going to hear from her soon. I'll be back in a few days and I'll give you a call, okay?" she said, descending the stairs to the cab.  
  
Jimmy nodded. "Sure. Have a fun trip. Breathe in some fresh air for me," he said, not noticing the look of shame on Melanie's face for lying to him yet again.  
  
"Bye Jimmy," she waved as the cab pulled away from the curb.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Catherine was waiting outside the house when Melanie pulled up in the cab. The driver got out and opened the trunk to put in her bags. Just as Catherine was getting into the cab, she heard a horn sound and turned to see an ambulance coming down the road.  
  
The rig slowed to a stop alongside the cab's open door and the driver noticed Melanie was already in the cab. "Hey guys. What's up?" asked Alex with her arm resting on the edge of the door, the window open.  
  
"Oh, hi Alex," Catherine said. "Melanie and I are just going on a shopping trip," she said quickly, not really knowing what to say to Alex.  
  
"Yeah, it's a bus trip through work. We're going to Quincy Market in Massachusetts. It's an overnighter," Melanie added quickly, knowing that Jimmy and Alex might talk and then Jimmy would know something was up.  
  
"Great!" Alex said. "Spend some money for me," she said as she started to drive away.  
  
"Bye," Catherine called as she got into the cab.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Bobby had just come from seeing Kim. He had left Joey in a chair just outside of her room, but within his sight. He was talking to the doctor and Joey couldn't understand a word of what they were saying. The only thing he noticed was the look of concern on Bobby's face as the doctor explained things. He slowly stood up and managed to go unnoticed as he slipped into Kim's room.  
  
The sight of his mother immediately greeted him with a bunch of machines hooked up to her making noises. He hesitated for a moment, afraid to approach the bed, but the need to see his mother, feel her near him, won out and he slowly approached. He climbed up into the chair next to her and took her hand.  
  
"Mom?" he said, quietly, not getting any response. He didn't really know what was wrong, but she looked so white under the light overhead. "Mom?" he said again a little louder this time. A few tears escaped down his cheeks as he again got no response and moved closer to his mother.  
  
At some point, Bobby had finished speaking with the doctor and looked around to see Joey was not in the chair where he left him. He spun around and looked through the window to see him lying on Kim's bed alongside her. He watched as Joey took Kim's arm and draped it around himself.  
  
Bobby quietly walked into the room, the nurse following him in noticing Joey in the bed. She started to say something to Bobby about the boy not being allowed in the ICU, but Bobby pulled here aside and quietly said, "I know. He'll only be a minute. She's all he has here in Ohio and he's scared to death. I'll move him in a minute. I'm a paramedic and I won't let him pull any lines out or anything."  
  
The nurse nodded and went on to her next patient saying, "I'll be back in a few minutes. Call me if you need me before then."  
  
"Thanks," Bobby said, walking over to Kim's bed and putting a hand on Joey's back.  
  
Joey looked up at him and asked him, "Is Mom going to be okay?"  
  
"They're doing everything they can for her, Joey. We just have to think positive," he said quietly. 


	13. Chapter 13

Ch 13  
  
"Bobby."  
  
Bobby stopped pacing when he heard someone say his name. "Hey Mel." Bobby accepted a hug from her and then one from Catherine while Melanie hugged Joey.  
  
"Has there been any word?" Catherine asked quietly.  
  
"The doctors want to go in and get the baby. I told them that you'd have to make that decision."  
  
Catherine nodded. "Can I see her?"  
  
"Yeah, go ahead. The doctor said he'd be back in a few minutes. He had to check on another patient."  
  
"Melanie?" Catherine motioned to her daughter.  
  
"I'm coming." She turned to Joey. "Be right back, okay?"  
  
Joey nodded quietly.  
  
Melanie got up and Bobby took her seat. Joey climbed into his lap and settled close.  
  
Catherine took her daughter's hand and the two went inside Kim's room. They separated as they went to opposite sides of her bed.  
  
It was quiet except for the monitors. Melanie carefully wrapped her hand around one of Kim's and squeezed it a little.  
  
Catherine brushed some hair away from Kim's face. She took a deep breath and let it out.  
  
"Mom?" Melanie looked across the bed worriedly.  
  
"When you were children, I used to watch you sleep. I used to wonder what was going on in your heads. What were you dreaming? Were you having a good dream? Would you wake up crying from a nightmare?" She sighed. "Now all I want is for Kim to wake up and tell me what she'd want me to do."  
  
"She'll wake up Mom. She will. Kim's strong. She's not going anywhere." Melanie said with conviction.  
  
Catherine nodded and then caught sight of the doctors over Melanie's shoulder. "I'll be right back."  
  
"Okay." Melanie nodded. She looked back at her sister. "C'mon Kimmy, don't make a liar out of me. Wake up, okay? Joey is here. He is so scared and he is trying so hard not to show it. Not quite sure which one of his parents he got that from but I'm pretty sure it was you. I know that it will probably hurt when you wake up and maybe somewhere inside you, you know that and that's why you haven't woken up. You're scared of the pain. But Kimmy, you don't do just plain scared. That's me. I'm the fraidy-cat, remember? You do the running scared thing, which is probably what got you out of New York in the first place. But don't worry; we'll all be here when you wake up. Well except for Jimmy, but if you want us to when you wake up, we'll call him and it's a safe bet he'll be on the next plane." Melanie stopped. She took a breath and then she started again on the exhale. "He really misses you and Joey. Well to be honest, I think he's to mad at you to miss you, so right now he probably just misses Joey. But I'm sure he'll get over it and realize how much he missed you too. You just gotta wake up, okay? Just open your eyes and tell me to shut up cause I'm rambling again."  
  
"Mel?"  
  
Melanie turned her head. "What's Mom's decision?"  
  
"The doctors say it's best for both Kim and the baby to go in." Bobby said quietly.  
  
"When?"  
  
"They're clearing an O.R. now."  
  
"You're her coach. Will they-"  
  
"No. I asked. She's unconscious so there's no need for a coach."  
  
Melanie nodded. "Bobby, I think-"  
  
"It's not our decision."  
  
She turned to face him. "He'd wanna know."  
  
"When Kim wakes up, she can make the call, until then we do nothing."  
  
Melanie nodded. She turned back to her sister. She bent down close. "I love you Kimmy," she whispered. "Don't make a liar out of me, 'kay?" She kissed her sister's cheek and then straightened back up.  
  
-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-  
  
"You look like hell." Doc said bluntly to Jimmy when the firefighter appeared in the kitchen.  
  
"Thanks Doc. It's good to see you too." Jimmy said passively.  
  
"I mean it. When was the last time you got some serious sleep?"  
  
"I don't know. When did Kim take my son?"  
  
"Jimmy, you can't do this to yourself." Doc counseled. "You need sleep. You need to be alert. People's lives depend on it. Not to mention your own life."  
  
"Doc-"  
  
"I know. Butt out. Can't do it. I work with you every day. You saved my life once remember?"  
  
"Yeah and you returned the favor."  
  
"Well now I'm about to make it so you owe me one. Get some sleep. I know you miss Joey. I know your life is in the toilet. I also know that you can't do anything about Joey being gone. Kim's the one who took off. The ball is in her court on Joey. But you have a choice to make your life better. Do it. Do it now. Do it so that when Kim decides to let you know where she is, and she will, Joey still has a father on this earth and that Kim's not taking him to a headstone." Doc finished. Then he took a water bottle out of the fridge and left the room leaving Jimmy to process what he'd just said. 


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14  
  
Bobby was on the phone with his boss and managed to get a couple of days off from work. "Thanks. No, two days should be fine. I'll work overtime whenever you need it Tim," he said to his supervisor. "Right. Bye," he said, hanging up and turning back to Catherine and Melanie. Joey was asleep on Melanie's lap.  
  
"Well, that's taken care of," Bobby said awkwardly, not really knowing what he should say.  
  
"Bobby," Catherine spoke quietly. Bobby looked over at her as she stood up and slowly walked over to him. She stood there looking at him, Bobby looking back at her waiting for her to go on. She put a hand on the side of his face. "Thank you for taking care of my babies," she said, tears springing to her eyes as she wrapped both arms around him and gave him a hug.  
  
"I tried. I just wish I could have prevented all this," he said, hugging her back.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy was sitting out in front of the station. He had changed into his civilian clothes, but had no idea where to go. He was feeling so lost. He needed to see his son. He'd screwed up so bad. He totally destroyed his friendship with Lombardo and he could see the changed looks from the guys. They all knew what he did and he'd lost their respect.  
  
Davis and Bosco were walking out of the Precinct after their shift. They were deciding where to go for a drink and some eats when Davis stopped suddenly. Bosco stopped and looked at him and then followed Ty's gaze across the street to Doherty.  
  
"Damn. That guy is messed up," said Davis.  
  
Bosco nodded, "You're not kiddin'. I ran into him at my Ma's bar a while ago. He was trashed. Actually, my Ma called me. She recognized him from when the group goes in there and remembered hearing about him going through some tough times. So, she called me because he was drinking so much and looking for a fight," he finished.  
  
"So, what happened?" Ty asked him.  
  
Bosco looked up at Davis and then back over to Doherty. "So, I talked to him. He got pissed off and took a swing at me. He caught me on the second try," he said, rubbing the scar above his eye, chuckling.  
  
Davis smiled and said, "And?"  
  
"And then he passed out and I took him to my place to sleep it off," he finished.  
  
Davis looked at him. "Bos, you actually helped the guy out. I thought you two didn't get along?"  
  
"Yeah, well. I didn't want him to choke on his own puke. That'd make me look like a real jerk. Besides, he's not so bad. He's just messed up right now," he said, again looking at Jimmy just sitting there.  
  
"So, are we gonna go get some eats or what?" Bosco said to Davis.  
  
"Yeah, let's go," Ty said as the two started toward Bosco's car. "Bos? Should we ask Jimmy to go?"  
  
"Sure. Get in, we'll swing by on the way to Haggerty's," Bosco said. Ty opened the door and got in. Bosco started the car and drove over to the firehouse.  
  
"Hey, Doherty," he yelled out his window twice before Jimmy realized someone was calling him. He looked over at Bosco and Davis.  
  
"Doherty. Get in. We're goin' to Haggerty's," Bosco said. Not having anywhere else to go, he got up and slid into the back seat after Davis opened the door and put the front seat forward for him to get in.  
  
"This ought to be a barrel of laughs," Bosco said under his breath as they headed toward Haggerty's.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
It had been about three hours since they had seen the staff wheel Kim toward the operating room. Joey had woken up twice asking if his Mom was all better. Catherine was sitting in the corner with him, gently running her fingers through his hair watching him sleep with his head in her lap.  
  
Bobby came over and gently placed a blanket over the boy. "You're so good with him, Bobby," Catherine whispered.  
  
"I love him like he's my own," Bobby smiled and walked back over toward Melanie who just came back with more coffee.  
  
"Thanks," he said, taking the steaming cup from her.  
  
"It's been a long time, Bobby," Melanie remarked.  
  
"Not so long, really," he said, trying to reassure her. They moved over to the window and were looking out at the beautiful site of the city all lit up in the night sky. Bobby was the first to notice the operating room doors open in the reflection in the window. He grabbed Melanie's hand and turned around.  
  
"Mom," Melanie called quietly over to Catherine. Catherine slid out from under Joey, putting her jacket under his head as a pillow and walked over to stand with Bobby and Melanie.  
  
The doctor walked over to them and sat down, motioning for them all to sit down as well. He looked over at Joey who was still sleeping and lowered his voice so as not to wake the boy.  
  
"Well, we've completed the procedure. Kim lost a lot of blood and I'm afraid we had to do a partial hysterectomy in order to stop the bleeding. She should recover, but it'll take a while - not like if she had just had the baby without complications. She has a lot of healing to do," he said, pausing. "And I'm afraid she won't be able to have anymore children," he finished.  
  
"And the baby?" asked Catherine as the three of them held their breath.  
  
"The baby is fine. She seems healthy. She's in the neonatal ICU right now, but she shouldn't have to be there long. You can all go up and see her through the glass if you want. You won't be able to see Kim for at least an hour and she won't be awake probably until sometime in the morning," he finished, standing up and almost tripping over something behind him. He looked back and saw that Joey was standing there looking up at him with a very worried look on his face.  
  
"Can my Mom come home now?" Joey asked timidly.  
  
The doctor bent down on one knee so that he was on the same level with the boy. "Your Mom's pretty tired right now. So, we'll let her rest for a few days, okay?" Joey nodded his approval.  
  
"That's a good boy," he said, tousling Joey's hair. "Why don't you go up with them and see your new baby sister?" he said, and saw the first smile he'd ever seen from him. He stood up, shook Bobby's hand, nodded to Catherine and Melanie and said, "I'll have the nurse let you know when you can come in and see her - one at a time and only for a moment," he advised. "But it won't be for at least an hour or so."  
  
"Thanks, Doctor," said Bobby as the doctor turned and headed back through the doors he'd come out of.  
  
The four members of Kim's family quietly walked up to the Neonatal ICU unit to see the newest member of the family. They took one look and even if they didn't already know, there was no denying she was Jimmy's daughter. She had his black hair and smiling eyes. She even had the dimples. She was beautiful and she was screaming her disapproval of her accommodations.  
  
Joey knocked on the glass and said, "Hi Charlie."  
  
"Charlie?" Catherine and Melanie said at the same time.  
  
Bobby nodded. "Yeah, Kim said that she had picked out the name Charlotte if the baby was a girl. 'Charlie' for short."  
  
"Charlie it is then," said Catherine, putting an arm around Melanie who was crying like a baby at the sight of her new niece. 


	15. Chapter 15

Ch 15  
  
Two years later-  
  
Kim sat on the couch in her two-story house reading a magazine. It was around nine-thirty at night and Joey and Charlie were sleeping upstairs. Her ears perked up when she heard footsteps on the wraparound porch. She'd just turned the page when one of the front doors opened.  
  
Without looking up she said, "Hey Bobby. Dinner's in the oven. We had meatloaf."  
  
"Good." Bobby nodded. "How was work?"  
  
"Interesting."  
  
"Hey Kim." Another voice said right before the door shut.  
  
"Hey Billy." She said. "How's Maureen doing?"  
  
"She's getting close. Really close." Billy Thompson, Bobby's partner, grinned. His wife was expecting their first child any day now and he could hardly wait.  
  
Kim glanced over and smiled.  
  
"So, how's your shiner?" Billy asked.  
  
Kim cursed under her breath and looked fully at her friends. "Who told you?"  
  
"Casey." Bobby said coming over to inspect his friend's face.  
  
"I swear that woman has the biggest mouth." Kim muttered as she tilted her head to give Bobby a better view.  
  
"C'mon Kim, you couldn't expect to hide it from us till it healed could you?" Billy asked with a smirk.  
  
"Nice job. Did you get an x-ray?" Bobby asked as he gently pressed on Kim's bruised face.  
  
"Yeah. Nothing's broken. Really, it's not as bad as it looks." She said right before she winced as Bobby hit a particularly sore spot.  
  
"No offense or anything, but nothing could be as bad as this looks. You gotta stop trying to break up fights. That's what the hospital security is for." Bobby said as he dropped his hands and went over to help himself to some dinner.  
  
"They were busy collecting artillery from some of our other patients. It was gang banger day in the E.R." Kim said. "I think I heard Joe say that he found a couple grams on one patient and two guns on another. But then everyone found some kind of weapon today. Oh before I forget, Bobby can you relieve my sitter next Friday? She has the SAT's on Saturday and her mom wants her in her own bed for at least part of the night."  
  
"Sure. You're working a night shift on Friday the thirteenth? Last time you did that you got a rib cracked."  
  
"No that was when I worked on Halloween. Friday the thirteenth, I just get thrown up on. Actually it's kind of fun. It's like Mardi gras. All the loonies come out to play."  
  
Bobby just rolled his eyes.  
  
hr  
  
About an hour later Kim locked up the front doors and set the alarm before turning out the lights and going to her own room at the back of the house. She left the bedroom door partially open in case Joey came down in the middle of the night or Charlie called out for her. She changed into her pajamas and pulled back the covers before turning out the overhead and crawling into bed.  
  
She stared at the ceiling for a while thinking about tomorrow. It was Charlie's second birthday. She had invited some kids from Charlie's daycare at the hospital and a few of the neighborhood kids and of course Bobby.  
  
She closed her eyes and sighed a little as she thought of all she'd been through the last two years. Leaving New York, school, childbirth and the slow recovery when it hurt to move sometimes, the move to Chicago, and single parenthood.  
  
She'd never regretted her choices but every now and again in the back of her mind she felt this little sensation of guilt when she thought of Jimmy and the hell he must have gone through after she'd left New York with Joey.  
  
Melanie gave her a bit of news every now and again but for the most part Kim didn't know what was going on with her ex-husband.  
  
Kim turned onto her side and relaxed as she drifted off. She needed her rest for tomorrow. Ten two-year-olds were going to invade her home in sixteen hours. She'd need all the sleep she could get. 


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16  
  
One Month Later  
  
It had been two years since Kim had left with Joey. No trace of him anywhere. Jimmy stopped going to Melanie and Catherine's houses looking for Kim. He had resigned himself to the fact that he'd probably never see his son again. And seeing Melanie and Catherine only made him angrier. He knew they knew where his son was.  
  
Today, Joey's 10th birthday, Jimmy sat by himself up on the roof of the firehouse. His friends kept telling him to get on with his life. They were all worried about him. He had settled his differences with Lombardo and it turned out that he was not the father of Linda's baby. "Thank God for small favors," he thought to himself. Lombardo was a great Dad and he loved being a family man. It seemed as though all was forgotten and they were good friends again. Linda even kept trying to fix Jimmy up with her friends from work. Jimmy just wasn't interested.  
  
He ran into Brooke from time to time. She was civil to him, but he never could look her in the eye. He felt too guilty about how he'd hurt her. But then, he hurt every woman that he'd ever been involved with.  
  
Jimmy was brought back to reality by the sound of Alex's voice. She was in the window of the upstairs yelling up to him. "Hey! Doherty! Let's go. We got a job!" she said, pausing for a moment to make sure that he'd heard her this time. "Coming," he yelled down to her. Alex headed down stairs to jump on the truck. Jimmy followed close behind. At least he still had his job to keep his mind occupied for a little while. He grabbed his gear and jumped on the truck as it pulled out of the station.  
  
"Whatta we got, Cap?" he called over to the Captain who had a worried look on his face. He'd seen Jimmy go downhill ever since Kim had left. He always used to be aggressive in a fire, but he was different now - he took greater chances. It was like he didn't care if he got hurt or even killed in a fire. He'd tried to talk to Doherty on several occasions and finally had it out with him. He remembered the day well.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I"Doherty! My office. NOW!" the Captain called to Jimmy when they had gotten back from their last call. He'd just gotten off the phone with the doctor at Mercy. D.K. was going to be okay, but he was lucky. He'd be back to work in a couple of shifts.  
  
Jimmy knew he was in trouble. He'd taken too big of a risk and one of his best friends had paid the price. He walked into the Captain's office, head down.  
  
The Captain walked over and slammed the door shut. The guys outside of the office all flinched when they heard the slamming of the door. Then, they heard the muffled sounds of the Captain reaming Jimmy out for his stupid actions.  
  
Billy Walsh looked over at Lombardo, "We gotta do something about him. He's gonna get himself or someone else killed soon."  
  
"I know, Billy. I can't believe Kim just left like that. He needs to see Joey. I'm gonna stop by Kim's old apartment and see her sister. See if I can get anything out of her," he said, and was then interrupted by the opening of the Captain's door.  
  
"I mean it Doherty! I'll pull you in a heartbeat if you don't get your head out of your ass," he finished as Doherty came out and headed up to the bunkroom./I  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Cap? Whatta we got?" Jimmy asked again, pulling the Captain back to the present.  
  
"Car accident. Nothing too bad," he replied turning back to the front and then telling the driver where to park the truck as they pulled up on the scene. "Okay, guys. Do your thing," he said as the crew began going about their assigned duties.  
  
Jimmy was kind of disappointed that there wasn't a working fire they were going to. Those kinds of calls took his full attention. This kind of call was more of a cut and dried response. Everyone had a job to do and they did them well. Sometimes you didn't even have to think about what you were doing. And that's when things get dangerous.  
  
Doc and Carlos were already on-scene and inside the car with the patient. The patient was critical and needed to be extricated as soon as possible. Jimmy went to the hood of the car and lifted it. He started to go about the job of disconnecting the battery, standard operating procedure at any car fire or accident scene. As he reached over to rip the cables off, there was a spark and the battery exploded. Jimmy jumped back at the first sign of the spark, but wasn't able to beat the explosion of the battery that followed. He caught the explosion full in the face, the battery acid spraying over him. Billy immediately hit him with the water from the hose that was at the ready for any kind of emergency - another standard at this type of a call - to wash away any fire and dilute the acid. Alex dropper her tools and immediately went to Jimmy's side.  
  
"Jimmy! Let me see. Jimmy you have to let me see," she said, trying to pull his hands away from his face. Finally, the Captain was there and helped Alex get his arms down so she could take a look.  
  
"What's goin' on out there?" Doc called out from inside the vehicle. He knew from the sounds that something happened and someone got hurt. He just didn't know how badly or if he should call for another rig.  
  
"Jimmy got hit in the face when the car battery exploded," one of the firefighters yelled in to Doc.  
  
"How bad?" Doc asked, continuing with the care of his patient as the rest of the fire crew cut the posts with the jaws and began to peel the roof back in order to get the patient out.  
  
"I don't know. Alex and the Captain are with him," came the reply.  
  
Finally the roof was removed and Doc stood up to look over at Jimmy. "Alex! What do you need?" he yelled over to her as she reached into the open trauma kit alongside the car and grabbed a bottle of sterile water used for burn patients. She opened the bottle and began pouring it over Jimmy's face and neck to get any remaining acid off of him. Jimmy was in quite a bit of pain, both from the shock of what happened and the burns.  
  
"Chemical burns to the face and neck. I don't know if he ingested anything. He had safety goggles and his gear on so that saved his eyes, hands and body. We got him pretty quick with the water," Alex said, looking up and nodding at Billy who had been the quickest to react. "Hopefully, the burns won't be too bad."  
  
"Do you need me?" Doc asked, as he and Carlos finished putting their patient on a backboard and began removing him from the car with the help of the firefighters.  
  
"I've got him. He can probably ride in with you guys. I'll get some vitals on him for you," answered Alex.  
  
"Jimmy? Can you hear me?" Alex said as Jimmy suddenly fell silent. "Jimmy?" she said again, beginning to get alarmed.  
  
After a moment, Jimmy quietly replied, "Yeah, Alex. I hear you."  
  
"Did you ingest any of this stuff?" Alex asked him, as she slowly helped him to sit up. He thought for a moment, taking time to notice any funny taste or pain in his mouth.  
  
"I don't think so. That's unfortunate," he said sadly. "Did anyone else get hurt?" he asked, suddenly afraid that he'd hurt someone else with his inattention.  
  
"No, just you big guy," came the response from Billy, who was removing Jimmy's gloves and helping him out of his contaminated turnout coat. Alex was removing his goggles.  
  
Jimmy opened his eyes and looked over at Billy. "Thanks, man."  
  
"Anytime, Bro'," Billy responded slapping Jimmy on the back and heading back to the car accident to finish his job.  
  
Alex went about the task of treating the burns to Jimmy's face. "So how bad are they?" he asked her.  
  
"Not too bad. I think Billy got to you pretty quick," she said, looking at him, thinking about his comment of a few minutes ago. She made a mental note to quietly mention it to Doc before they left for the hospital. She knew who was working in the ER that day and knew that he'd keep it as confidential as he could. Couldn't hurt to have someone come in and talk to him - especially after a comment like that.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy finished up at the hospital. Luckily he just had some minor burns to his face. They'd heal in time and with very little or no scarring. He was lucky they'd said. Funny, he didn't feel lucky, he thought to himself as he walked in the darkened street, a box under his arm.  
  
He knocked on the door and waited for Catherine to answer the door. He wanted to drop off a birthday present for Joey. He'd been doing that for his birthdays and Christmas for the last two years now. He knew he was getting the presents, because every once in a while, he'd get a thank you card in the mail from Joey. The return address on the envelope always read either Catherine or Melanie's address. So he was mailing them there and then they were forwarding them on to Jimmy.  
  
Catherine opened the door without thinking, the cordless phone to her ear. She stopped talking into the phone. "Jimmy," she said in a whisper, but loud enough to be heard on the other end of the phone.  
  
"Grandma?" came the voice from the other end of the phone. Joey had called his grandmother to thank her for the presents that she and Melanie had sent to him for his birthday. "Is that my Dad?" he asked.  
  
Catherine was flustered for just a moment, but long enough for Jimmy to take the phone from her. "Joey?" he said into the phone, tears springing to his eyes as he heard his son's voice for the first time in two years.  
  
"Dad. Are you okay?" Joey asked him, Kim coming up behind him when she heard Joey was talking to Jimmy.  
  
"Yeah, Pal. I'm great now. Happy Birthday, Son," he said, tears falling down his cheek.  
  
Suddenly Kim was on the phone. "Jimmy," she said. "I'm sorry, but I can't do this right now," she said, hanging up the phone.  
  
"Kim! Joey!" yelled Jimmy into the phone, but all he heard was the dial tone. He handed the phone back to Catherine and turned to walk away.  
  
"Jimmy," Catherine called after him. "Are you okay? You look like you're hurt," she said. "Can I do anything for you?"  
  
Jimmy continued down the steps, not turning around, just waving Catherine off as he continued down the street.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Mom! Why did you do that?" asked Joey with anger in his voice.  
  
"Joey," Kim started only to be interrupted by her son.  
  
"No Mom! He's my father. I wanted to talk to him," he said storming off to his room. He'd been asking to see his father for a while now. His friends had been doing things with their fathers and even though Bobby was always there for him and they were very close, he still felt slighted and his anger was building.  
  
"Kim," Bobby said from behind her. "You need to fix this," he said simply, putting a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"I know," Kim said. "I know." 


	17. Chapter 17

Ch 17  
  
Kim lay on the couch after dinner the next night. The TV was on but she wasn't sure she could tell anyone what was on at the moment. She lifted her head to look upstairs. The hallway was dark, which meant Joey had either fallen asleep or he was just avoiding her like he'd been doing for the last day and a half.  
  
She sighed. She didn't blame him. She'd be mad too if she were in Joey's place. She smiled a little. Two years, almost three, and Joey still thought the world of Jimmy.  
  
"The world's greatest dad." She whispered to herself. "God, what am I gonna do?"  
  
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^  
  
Jimmy strapped on his gear as he walked towards the apartment building.  
  
"Jimmy, be careful." Alex warned as she put on a helmet. She was worried about her friend. He'd been very quiet that day.  
  
"Always." He said flippantly as he passed Doc and Carlos.  
  
"Yeah right." Carlos muttered to Doc.  
  
Jimmy pressed on up the stairs. He could feel the heat grow around him, as he got closer to the fire. He spoke into his walkie-talkie. "Cap? Do we have a location?"  
  
"Second floor. Apartment 2G. They're saying it's a kitchen fire." The captain's muted voice said.  
  
"Great." Jimmy muttered. He made his way down the hall. Michaels and Lombardo followed.  
  
"Doherty." The captain's voice said again. "We have a report of people still in the apartment."  
  
"Where?" Jimmy asked.  
  
"Not sure. Be careful and that's an order."  
  
"Yes sir." Jimmy said.  
  
The firefighters advanced with the hose. As they sprayed at the flames Jimmy faintly heard a thump from the back. "I'm going back there. I think someone might be in trouble." He said over the spray of the hose.  
  
"Jimmy!" Lombardo shouted.  
  
But Jimmy didn't hear he was to far into the apartment already.  
  
Jimmy opened the door to the bedroom and looked around. He didn't see anyone but he decided to quickly check the other side of the bed. A lamp lay broken. That was probably what he'd heard, but who'd broken it?  
  
He turned just in time to see someone rush at him. The next thing he heard was a window breaking and then everything went black.  
  
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^  
  
Kim bolted upright on her couch trying to catch her breath.  
  
"Oh God," She breathed. Her heart was hammering so hard she thought it would come out of her chest. She forced herself to calm down as she looked around her. She blew out one last hard breath before she returned to normal breathing. She shook her head. "What the hell was that?" she whispered.  
  
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^  
  
Kim started an I.V. on Rita, one of their frequent fliers, and smiled as the woman cursed in her sleep.  
  
"Hey Kim. What's this?" Dr. Jacobson asked.  
  
"Rita, back by popular demand. Medics found her in the park. She's drunk. Wanna get in on the pool for her B.A.L?"  
  
"Betting on the patients isn't the healthiest thing to be doing." He said. "Put me down for four-fifty."  
  
"Okay." Kim said.  
  
"Hey Kim?" Mia, the desk clerk, poked her head in. "There's a call for you."  
  
"Is it Joey?"  
  
"No. It's someone named Melanie."  
  
"What line?" Kim went to the phone near the door.  
  
"Three."  
  
Kim punched the line. "Mel?"  
  
"Hey Kimmy."  
  
"Mel, what's wrong? Are you okay? Is Mom?"  
  
"We're fine. Kim, Mrs. Doherty called Mom before."  
  
"Jimmy's mom? What happened?"  
  
"There was a fire today and Jimmy got hurt. I don't know all the details but apparently someone took Jimmy with him when he jumped out a window."  
  
Kim didn't make a sound for at least a minute. Then, "Is Jimmy okay?"  
  
"A pretty bad concussion and some broken ribs. He's in a coma at Mercy."  
  
"Mel, listen to me. I will be there as soon as I can okay? Can I stay with you?"  
  
"Yeah. Absolutely."  
  
"See you soon." Kim hung up the phone and then went to make the arrangements necessary for her departure. 


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18  
  
Kim looked out the window as the plane made its final approach to JFK. She didn't think it possible, but she felt her stomach tighten more as the wheels of the plane touched the runway.  
  
"This'll be a barrel of laughs," she said under her breath as the plane taxied to the gate.  
  
Kim was walking through the gate and looking around for either her mother or Melanie. Finally, she saw Melanie waving to her from behind a crowd of people. She waved back with a weak smile and made her way over to her.  
  
"Hey," she said as she met up with Melanie. They hugged each other. "Any news?" she asked, hoping that Melanie would tell her that Jimmy was fine and she could get back on the plane and head home.  
  
She was able to get a fairly early flight, but she'd had to be at the airport before Joey got out of school. Mrs. Morris, Charlotte's babysitter from across the street, had agreed to take care of Joey after school until Bobby got out of work. But, knowing Bobby, he'd get out of work early, pick up Charlotte, and meet Joey at the door. He loved those kids like they were his own and they loved him right back.  
  
She had called Bobby at work and told him what was going on. He thought that Kim should bring Joey along with her, but she had said no. "Just let me see how bad he is," she told him. "If I need to, I'll send for him."  
  
He didn't agree with her, but respected her decision. "Call me when you see how he is," he said before hanging up.  
  
##########  
  
In the car ride over to the hospital, Melanie and Kim were making light talk, as Kim looked at all the changes in New York City over the last two years. "Ever changing," she thought to herself, "but ever the same."  
  
"So what exactly happened?" Kim asked her finally.  
  
"No one is really sure. Apparently, the guy who lived in the apartment had some mental problems. I guess he flaked out and forgot that he had food cooking on the stove. The food burned and started the kitchen on fire and the neighbor called the fire department. On the way upstairs, they got information that there was someone still inside. D.K. said that they were in the kitchen and just about to check for extension into the ceiling when something crashed in the back bedroom," she said, swearing at the guy that came from nowhere cutting them off. "Jerk!" she yelled even though he couldn't hear her.  
  
"Anyway, Jimmy went back to check it out and the next thing anyone knows, Jimmy and the guy came sailing out the window. Jimmy was lucky that the guy landed under him and broke his fall somewhat. Jimmy survived, the other guy didn't," she finished, looking over at her sister.  
  
They pulled into the hospital parking lot and began walking into the building. "Thanks, Mel. For coming in with me," Kim said, taking her sister's hand.  
  
"Just so you know, Mrs. Doherty is not going to be pleased to see you. Especially since you don't have Joey with you," Melanie warned her.  
  
"Yeah, well I didn't expect a welcome home party," Kim said. "But I wasn't going to bring Joey out here just so he could have the memory of his father dying."  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The elevator doors opened and Kim and Melanie stepped off. They were immediately greeted by at least four sets of angry eyes. Kim walked slowly toward Mrs. Doherty and stopped a few feet away, Melanie behind her.  
  
"How's Jimmy?" Kim asked her.  
  
"Like you care," she responded angrily. "How dare you take my grandson - Jimmy's son - away without telling us where and how he is. How dare you do that to Jimmy!" she said, swiftly moving the last two feet and slapping Kim hard on the cheek.  
  
Kim put her hand on her cheek, feeling the sting immediately, bringing tears to her eyes. "I hope to be able to explain it to you someday," she said simply. She walked over to Jimmy's co-workers, her former co-workers, from Camelot waiting a little further down the hall, although they'd seen the exchange. They were civil enough to her, but she immediately knew that she was the bad guy here.  
  
She saw Doc and knew that he'd talk to her. He was never one to judge anyone. "Doc how is he?" Kim asked him quietly.  
  
"The same, Kim," he said. "Doctor says he could come out of it today, tomorrow - - or never," he answered. "He's in there," he said, indicating the Jimmy was in.  
  
Kim slowly walked over to the doorway and looked into the room. She stepped into the room and just looked at him. He looked so helpless lying there. She walked over to him and stood there. She couldn't believe anything could ever hurt Jimmy Doherty. He'd come through numerous injuries from fighting fires. Hell, he'd been shot at close range and still survived. She just couldn't believe that something that left only minor scratches on his face from broken glass and splintered wood could leave him hovering near death. She put her hand to her mouth, trying to hold off the sob she felt coming.  
  
"Jimmy," she said crying as she reached out to hold his hand. "Jimmy, I'm so sorry for what I did to you. There's so much I need to tell you about. I've made some mistakes, but I didn't realize it until now. Please Jimmy. You have to wake up, you have to fight," she finished as tears ran down her cheeks.  
  
She felt a presence behind her and turned to see D.K. standing behind her. He walked over to her and stood behind her, both of them looking down at Jimmy. D.K. put a hand on her shoulder. He'd known Jimmy the longest. He'd known all the hell that Jimmy had put her through. He didn't agree with what she did, but he could understand a little better than the others. "He's been hurting badly," he said to her quietly. "For a long time. You should have called him. Or at least let Joey talk to him. He hasn't been the same Jimmy since you left," he finished, gently squeezing her shoulder.  
  
She reached up and covered his hand with her own. "I know, D.K. I know, but" she didn't finish and D.K. felt her shoulders start to shake as she let the last two and half year's of uncertainty to escape. 


	19. Chapter 19

Ch 19  
  
"So how is he?"  
  
"He could wake up tomorrow or he might never wake up again." Kim said to Bobby over the phone later that night.  
  
"One extreme or the other."  
  
"It's Jimmy. You expected anything less?"  
  
Kim could hear Bobby's low chuckle. "So how long are you staying?"  
  
"I'll be flying into O'Hare tomorrow around six."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Bobby, I can't stay. You know that. There's work and the kids and I'd like my son to start speaking to me sometime soon so I don't think I should miss his game on Saturday."  
  
"You know, I think he'd talk to you if you'd let him call a certain somebody."  
  
"Bobby."  
  
"I know. It's none of my business."  
  
"No it is. If it's anybody's it's yours. I think you're right. I just don't know how to let Jimmy back in. Not even for Joey." Kim sighed a little. "Hey we're running Mel's phone bill sky high. We better hang up."  
  
"Excuses, excuses."  
  
"Shut up. Oh, if you have trouble getting Charlie to sleep tonight, play that Elvis Costello CD."  
  
"Elvis Costello?"  
  
"She likes 'Everyday I Write The Book'. For some reason it always puts her right to sleep."  
  
"Okay."  
  
Kim could still hear Bobby laughing. "Hey consider yourself lucky Caffey. Abby likes Sarah McLachlan. I had to listen to 'Full of Grace' three times tonight before she finally fell asleep."  
  
"How is the littlest Zambrano chica?"  
  
"She's good." Kim said with a fond smile as she thought of her niece who was, thankfully, asleep in Joey's old room. "I'll see you tomorrow okay?"  
  
"Bye Kim."  
  
They hung up and Kim put Melanie's cordless back in the charger. As she sat down she heard the front door open and close.  
  
"Kim?"  
  
"In here Mel."  
  
Her sister appeared with take-out boxes a few seconds later. "Dinner is served," she announced.  
  
"Good. I'm starving. I don't think I've eaten since breakfast."  
  
"They didn't serve anything on the plane?"  
  
"Too nervous to eat."  
  
"About Jimmy," Melanie nodded.  
  
"Yeah and there's the fact that I have never liked flying." Kim said as she helped herself to a burger and fries.  
  
"You still afraid to fly?"  
  
"It's not a fear. It's a thing I have. I just don't like nothing between my vehicle and the ground."  
  
"That's a fear."  
  
"Shut up." Kim laughed. "So how's Tony?"  
  
"Tony who?"  
  
"Oh no what happened?"  
  
"It was me. I have this aversion to him sleeping with his partner."  
  
"He's sleeping with his partner?"  
  
"Yeah. For about the last month according to him."  
  
"Have you ever met her? It is a her right?"  
  
"You're hilarious Kimmy. Yes it's a her."  
  
"Just checking."  
  
"Uh-huh. Anyway yeah I've met her. She's even been here for dinner."  
  
"What's her name?"  
  
"Brooke."  
  
Kim nearly spit her food out. "Brooke?"  
  
"Yeah. You okay?"  
  
"Do you have a picture of her by any chance?"  
  
"Actually I do. Why?"  
  
"Just wanna see something."  
  
"Okay. One sec." Melanie got up and went into the bedroom. She came back a few minutes later with a packet of pictures. "These are from a party one of the guys had for us a few days after Abby was born," She flipped through them and finally chose one. "That's her. I hate to admit it but she's really pretty." She handed the picture to Kim and sat back down.  
  
Kim looked at the picture. "Son of a bitch."  
  
"What?"  
  
"This is Brooke."  
  
"Yeah I know. I've met her."  
  
"No. This is Jimmy's Brooke."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Yeah." Kim laughed shortly. "I guess she doesn't use Doherty anymore."  
  
"Come to think of it, Tony did say she'd been married once but that she'd had it annulled cause he fooled around on her right before the wedding." Melanie started to laugh. "Unbelievable. I wonder if she ever made the connection."  
  
"Probably. Zambrano's not that common." She gave the picture back to Melanie.  
  
"Speaking of making connections, do you think Jimmy will connect the dots once he wakes up and finds that picture on his nightstand in the hospital? He might realize that you were there."  
  
"Yeah but by that time, I will either be in the air or back in Chicago."  
  
Melanie nodded. "When's your flight?"  
  
"I wrote down over by the phone." Kim nodded to the phone. "You and Abby should come visit this summer. Joey would love it. So would your goddaughter."  
  
"I'd love it too. We'll take the train. I don't want Abby to fly so young. We'll go from Grand Central into Union."  
  
"I think Abby would like that too."  
  
"But I bet Joey would love it even more if Jimmy were the one to get off the train or plane."  
  
Kim tilted her head and closed her eyes. "I just don't know where to begin with him. On the way here I started thinking about where we'd be if I'd stayed in that hospital room when he got shot and told Brooke to get lost."  
  
"Do you think you'd have Charlie?"  
  
"I don't know." She looked at her sister. "Can you keep a secret?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"After Joey was born, the doctors told me that it wouldn't be a good idea for me to have anymore kids. That I might lose them or my life. I couldn't stop crying for two days."  
  
"Kimmy." Melanie looked sad. "Why didn't you say something?"  
  
"I don't know. The only other person besides Jimmy that knew was Bobby. I'm surprised he didn't bawl me out when he showed up in Ohio."  
  
"Yeah me too." Melanie smiled. "Turned out okay though right? You have Joey and Charlie and they are healthy and beautiful and you're still here."  
  
"Knock wood." Kim said and then she knocked on her head making both the girls laugh.  
  
^&^&^&^&^&^&^  
  
D.K. turned off the overhead light in Jimmy's room when he woke up. It was mid morning and the sun was streaming through the window. He retook his seat by his friend's side. Looking at the bedside table he smiled a little at the school picture of Joey. He looked like Kim.  
  
"Ohhh."  
  
D.K.'s head snapped to look at the bed. Jimmy's eyes were opening slowly.  
  
"Jimmy. Hey man welcome back. Don't go anywhere. I'm gonna go get a doctor."  
  
^&^&^&^&^&^&^  
  
"Well Mr. Doherty since you're awake, how would you like this tube out of your mouth?" The doctor said after he'd checked Jimmy's vitals and noticed he was triggering the vent.  
  
Jimmy nodded.  
  
"I think you know how this goes. Deep breathe in, and when I saw go, blow out the birthday candles." The doctor said as he readied the tube for removal. "Okay here we go."  
  
Jimmy blew out as hard as he could. He coughed and the nurse gave him some ice chips.  
  
"We'll be back in a little while. Until then rest up." The doctor said.  
  
Jimmy nodded.  
  
"How ya feeling?" D.K. asked.  
  
"Sore." Jimmy said in a raspy voice. "What happened?"  
  
"You don't remember?"  
  
"It's fuzzy."  
  
"A guy decided to see if he could fly and he took you with him. By the way, you can't fly either. Just in case you ever wondered."  
  
"Thanks." Jimmy managed to smile.  
  
D.K. reached over to the side and picked up the picture. "Here. Thought you might want this."  
  
Jimmy took it and then he stared. "Joey." His eyes filled with tears and his vision blurred. For some reason he turned it over. It was Kim's handwriting on the back. IA reminder that you are not a singular soul. Your actions will have equal and opposite reactions so be careful. If not for yourself, then for him./I  
  
Jimmy looked at his friend. "Is he here?"  
  
"Not that I saw. She-"  
  
"She? Kim? Was Kim here?"  
  
"Yeah. She was here."  
  
"Alone?"  
  
"Melanie was with her."  
  
"Melanie."  
  
"Yeah. Look Jimmy- what are you doing?"  
  
"I need papers."  
  
"Papers? What kind of papers?"  
  
"The kind you sign when you go AMA."  
  
"Are you nuts?" D.K. asked even as Jimmy unsteadily got out of bed.  
  
"I need pants."  
  
"You need to go up to the psych ward."  
  
"She's here. Joey could be here too. I'm not losing this chance."  
  
(~(~(~(~(~(~(~(~(  
  
Melanie had just closed the door behind her when her bell rang. She opened it up again and was faced with a haggard looking Jimmy.  
  
"Oh my God. Why aren't you in a hospital?"  
  
"Where's Kim?' Jimmy pushed past her. "Melanie, where is she?"  
  
"She's not here."  
  
"Don't lie to me."  
  
"Jimmy, she left. She went back."  
  
"Back where?"  
  
"Jimmy."  
  
"Melanie, I want to know." He yelled.  
  
"Would you shut up? You're going to-"  
  
"WAHHH!"  
  
"Wake up Abby." Melanie sighed. "Be right back."  
  
Jimmy scowled as he prowled the living room. Just as he turned to walk in another direction he saw a pad next to Melanie's phone.  
  
IFlight 6987/I  
  
He quietly tore the paper away and left the apartment headed for the airport. 


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20  
  
It started raining just as they called Kim's flight. She looked up at the sky nervously as she boarded the plane. "Great. It's bad enough flying in good weather, now I have to deal with rain, turbulence.... Stop!" she told herself as she made herself more nervous.  
  
She found her seat on the plane and sat down. She noticed some lightening off in the distance. After about 15 minutes, she heard the plane's engines pick up and the plane started to roll away from the gate. She couldn't see the haggard looking figure hurrying down the hallway to the gate.  
  
The plane took off and headed to Chicago - without Jimmy Doherty on board.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy made it to the gate in time to be told that the plane had just departed. "Dammit!" he said in exasperation.  
  
"Sir, are you okay? Do you need an ambulance or anything?" the airline clerk asked him as she looked at him holding onto the counter, obviously out of balance.  
  
"What? No. I'm okay. Look, can you tell me if Kim Zambrano made it onto the flight?" he asked.  
  
The clerk looked over the passenger list and saw that the ticket issued to Kim had been checked through. The clerk wasn't sure she should be giving out the information. "I'm really not supposed to be giving out that information, Sir," she said back to Jimmy.  
  
He turned on his charm. Even in the condition he was in, he could still smooth-talk the ladies. "I just need to know that Kim didn't miss the flight. My niece - her daughter - had an accident in Chicago and she wasn't able to find me to get her to the airport. I can't find her so I just want to know that she's on her way to her daughter. 'Cause as you can see, I'm not feeling that great myself, but if I have to, I'll fly out there on the next flight so she has someone with her," he finished.  
  
The clerk's heart immediately went out to this man who was obviously a great uncle and brother. "Well, the passenger list shows that the ticket issued to your sister was checked through so she should be on the plane," the clerk answered with a smile.  
  
"Great," he said, trying to show relief that his 'sister' was on her way to his 'niece.' Suddenly, he thought of something else. "Can you tell me if she was traveling alone? Or possibly had a young boy with her? I have to find out if I need to get my nephew from school," he lied.  
  
"No, she is the only Zambrano listed as traveling on this flight," the clerk answered him.  
  
"Oh - that's her maiden name. The boy would be listed as Doherty," he said. "She's divorced," he finished, completing the lie. "What the hell," he thought to himself.  
  
She looked over the passenger listing again and told him that there was no Doherty listed. He nodded and turned to go.  
  
"Are you sure you don't need some medical attention?" she asked him again as he caught himself and sat down in the chairs next to the gate that the plane had just left.  
  
"Yeah, I'm sure. Thanks," he said standing up and starting to turn to head... where? He had no idea what to do now. He knew that he couldn't just let her go without finding out where Joey was.  
  
"You know what?" he said, turning back to her and taking out his wallet with his credit card in it. "Can you book me on the next flight to Chicago? I'm going out there whether she wants me to or not," he said.  
  
"Certainly, Sir," she said, calling up the flights on her computer. "The next flight leaves in one hour. Would you like to book that?"  
  
"Yes, thank you," Jimmy answered, having no idea whether he should be flying in his condition or not.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
It was 6:30 and Kim and Bobby were having dinner at Barney's while Mrs. Morris looked after the kids.  
  
"So, you just left without talking to him Kim?" Bobby asked. "After you went all that way?"  
  
"Bobby, I told you. I just couldn't deal with it. Not with his family and friends around. You didn't see the way they were all looking at me," she tried to explain. "His mother slapped me. Right there in front of everyone," she added.  
  
"Well, you can't really blame them can you? You just left without giving anyone a chance to...," he stopped.  
  
"A chance to what?" she prodded Bobby.  
  
"I don't know. A chance to talk you out of it. Without talking to me," he said, trying not to show the hurt that was still there.  
  
Kim reached across and held onto Bobby's hand. "Bobby, you're the last one I wanted to hurt. But, I knew you'd try to talk me out of it and I just needed to think. I needed to be able to think without any distractions. I had to think of what was best for Joey and the baby," she said, trying to get her point across.  
  
"And did you?" he said quietly.  
  
"Did I what?" she asked, puzzled by his question.  
  
"Did you make the best decision for JOEY and CHARLIE? Or was it just the EASIEST decision for YOU?" Bobby said. Only he could talk to Kim this way. She would get mad at him sometimes, but she always listened to what he had to say. She always forgave him so he knew he could get away with it.  
  
He saw the anger in her eyes. But he saw her actually thinking about what he said too. "Maybe a little bit of both," she said simply. Bobby nodded.  
  
The waitress brought over the check and they paid and stood up to leave. It was 7:00 and she needed to get home and get the kids ready for bed. Bobby's dinner break was over and he had to get back to work.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy arrived in Chicago a little after 5:30. He'd immediately gone to a phone and dialed Information. He asked for a listing for a Kim Zambrano and was told that the number was unlisted. He tried explaining that it was an emergency, but the operator refused to give him the information. She had, however, offered to contact the Chicago police and have them get hold of her if it was an emergency. He declined and hung up the phone.  
  
He wandered around the airport for a little while, thinking that maybe Kim was still there. He walked into the coffee shop and ordered some soup and a soda. He wasn't really hungry, but he thought he'd probably need some food if he was going to keep looking for his son.  
  
His food came and he ate part of it. He was exhausted and his head was pounding. He paid the check and stood up to leave. He felt the room spin and everything grow darker. He tried to grab for the table to steady himself, but felt himself falling to the floor as everything went black.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Dispatch to Unit 41," came the voice over the radio.  
  
"Unit 41," Bobby's partner replied into the microphone.  
  
"Unit 41, take a at Chicago O'Hare. In the coffee shop."  
  
"10-4, Dispatch. We're in route."  
  
Within a few minutes, they had arrived at the scene. They walked through the airport with their equipment and eventually made it to the coffee shop. They were confronted with a crowd of onlookers and tried to nudge their way through.  
  
"Excuse me," Bobby said, pushing his way through from behind. Finally, he reached the patient and asked the waitress that was standing there what had happened as his partner began to assess the patient's condition.  
  
"I don't know," she replied. "He came in and had some soup and when he stood up to leave, he just kind of swayed a little and went down in a heap. He didn't look all that healthy when he came in, but I thought maybe he was just airsick or something. We get a lot of that," she offered.  
  
"Okay, thanks," Bobby replied as he began to set up the oxygen. He bent over to put the nasal canula on their patient and drew in a sharp breath. "Oh my God. Jimmy," he said. 


	21. Chapter 21

Ch 21  
  
Bobby sat by Jimmy's side on the ambulance ride to Cook County Hospital. It was about quarter after nine and they'd finally had Jimmy cleared by the O'Hare Medical Center for transfer. Bobby had talked to Dana back in New York who had told him Jimmy had signed out AMA earlier that day. She also said most of the squad house and the police force was turning New York inside out looking for him. She'd pass along the message that Jimmy was in Chicago. He'd thanked her and they'd hung up. Then he'd called the doctor that had taken care of Jimmy. Needless to say Jimmy should not have been out of bed let alone flying in his condition.  
  
Stubborn son of a bitch.  
  
He watched the other man carefully for signs of life or distress. As Bobby stared Jimmy's eyes started to open.  
  
Once they focused Jimmy whispered, "Bobby?"  
  
"Hey Jimmy."  
  
"Why am I not surprised?" He looked around himself. "What happened?"  
  
"You passed out, that's what happened." Bobby shook his head. "Not too smart, flying in your condition."  
  
"Don't start." Jimmy twisted his head slightly. "Kim?"  
  
"I'll call her when we get to the hospital and get you situated."  
  
"I wanna see Joey."  
  
"I'll tell her." Bobby nodded. "Take it easy Jimmy. You're lucky to be alive from what I hear."  
  
"Yeah." Jimmy nodded. "Hey Bobby?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"I'm giving you fair warning. When I'm better, I'm kicking your ass."  
  
"Fair enough." Bobby nodded.  
  
^*&*&*&*&*&*^  
  
Kim picked up the phone without turning on her lamp at around ten o'clock that night.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Kim?"  
  
"Bobby? What's wrong?"  
  
"I'm at County."  
  
"You often are at this time of night." Kim said.  
  
"Yeah. Billy and I had a pick up at O'Hare earlier tonight."  
  
"Bobby, is there a point?"  
  
"It was Jimmy."  
  
If Kim wasn't awake before she was now. "What? How? Why? What?"  
  
"He had a syncopal episode at the coffee shop there. I talked to Dana back home. He signed out AMA this morning."  
  
"Oh I am going to kill him. As soon as he gets better I am going to kill him."  
  
Bobby could hear Kim getting out of bed. "Stay where you are. I'm off soon. I'll come watch Charlie while you and Joey come down here. They're admitting Jimmy upstairs."  
  
"Joey has school in the morning."  
  
"He can miss it Kim." Bobby said. "If you don't take him, I will."  
  
"Fine." Kim closed her eyes. "Keep an eye on Jimmy. I'll go wake Joey."  
  
"You're doing the right thing Kim."  
  
"Just keep telling me that okay?"  
  
"Sure." Bobby laughed. "See you later."  
  
"Bye." Kim hung the phone up and the exiting her bedroom she went upstairs to where Joey and Charlie's rooms were.  
  
She quietly opened the door to her son's room and went over to him. "Joey? Sweetie?"  
  
He cracked an eye open. "Mom?"  
  
"Yeah. Honey I need you to wake up, okay? We need to go to the hospital."  
  
"Do you have to work?"  
  
"No honey. We're gonna go see your dad.' 


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22  
  
Kim gathered up Joey and Charlie and got them dressed. She packed some food and a couple of bottles for Charlie and they headed out to the hospital.  
  
"Daddy's here?" asked Joey, still half asleep. He wasn't awake enough to remember that he wasn't talking to his mother.  
  
"Daddy's at the hospital with Bobby," Kim explained to him again. "Remember I went to New York to see Daddy because he was sick," she asked, looking over at him to see him nodding that he remembered. "Well, he followed me back here to try to see you and he shouldn't have left the hospital and he got sicker. So, he's in the hospital here and we're going to go make sure that he's okay," she finished explaining.  
  
Joey thought about this for a moment and then said with anger, "So, because you wouldn't let me go with you to see him, he followed you back here and now he's sicker because of it?"  
  
"Yeah, well. It's complicated, Joey," she offered as an excuse. "Look, I'm not sure if you're going to be able to see him right away. I don't know how sick he is. But, if you can, I promise that I'll let you talk to him. Deal?"  
  
"I don't care how sick he is, I want to see him anyway," he argued. "Maybe if he can hear me it will help him."  
  
"We'll see," was all Kim would say.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Bobby was in the treatment room with Jimmy. His shift had finished right after they were finished bringing Jimmy in to the hospital and his partner had offered to bring the rig back and get it ready for the next shift.  
  
Jimmy was pretty much out of it. He had just gotten back from his CT Scan and was pretty heavily sedated. But, he faded in and out from time to time. The sedation was the only way to get him to stay still. He kept trying to get up to leave saying that he had to find his family. Bobby had had to explain it to the doctors.  
  
He started to come to and Bobby moved over closer to the bed. "Hey, Jimmy. How are you feeling?"  
  
"Been better. So, why?" asked Jimmy, trying to get information before he faded back out again.  
  
"Why what?" Bobby asked him.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me you knew where Kim was? You knew what it was doing to me. I know we never got along the greatest, but you know what Joey means to me," he said, struggling to keep his eyes open.  
  
"Jimmy. I swear. I didn't know right away. I swear. When I found out, I tried to get her to call you. But, I didn't feel it was up to me. I was all she had out here and I didn't want to upset her because of the..." he stopped himself, hoping that Jimmy was too groggy to have noticed. "Great!" Bobby thought to himself. "That's all you needed to do. Tell Jimmy that he's got another kid," he said angrily to himself.  
  
"Because of the what?" Jimmy asked. Bobby swore to himself.  
  
"Nothing. I just didn't want to make matters worse. I was hoping that she'd figure out whatever it was she was trying to figure out and then get in touch with you. I just wanted to be there for her in case she needed me," he said, trying to cover his near mistake.  
  
He didn't hear any response from Jimmy and looked over to see that he'd drifted back out again.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
They arrived at the hospital and Kim, Charlie and Joey headed into the Emergency Room looking for Bobby. Kim saw Bobby standing in the corner of one of the treatment rooms, but couldn't see whom he was with because the curtain was drawn. Bobby saw her out of the corner of his eye and headed out to her.  
  
"How is he?" Kim asked, trying to look around the curtain to see Jimmy.  
  
"He's out again. He just got back from CT, but I haven't heard anything yet. He's asking lots of questions, Kim," he said discreetly to Kim.  
  
Charlie was starting to fuss and Kim juggled and bounced with her, trying to get her to calm down.  
  
"Why don't you give her to me and Joey and I will wait over in chairs until you get a chance to talk to him," offered Bobby.  
  
Joey started to object by pulling on Kim's arm and she looked over at him. "Honey, just stay here with Bobby until I find out what's up. I promise that I'll let you see him after I've had a chance to talk to him, okay?"  
  
Joey just gave her a look that said, "You can't keep me from him." Bobby took Charlie and the diaper bag with the supplies. He looked at Joey, "C'mon Champ. Let's go get some breakfast and heat up some food and a bottle for Charlie."  
  
Joey followed Bobby down the hall, looking over his shoulder at his mother's back. 


	23. Chapter 23

Ch 23  
  
Kim peeked around the corner and saw that Jimmy was asleep. She picked up his chart and read it. Then she cursed to herself.  
  
"Such language Kimmy." A groggy voice said. "You know that's private."  
  
She put it back. "I oughta wring your neck. AMA? You sign out AMA and then you get on a plane? Are you trying to kill yourself?"  
  
"It's good to see you too."  
  
"Don't get cute and don't try and be charming. I think I'm immune to it after all this time."  
  
"Where's Joey?"  
  
"He's in chairs with Bobby." Kim sighed. "You really are nuts, you know that?"  
  
"Kim, don't start."  
  
"Don't start? I haven't begun to start. God you took a header out of a window and the only reason you're not lying in the city morgue is because the guy who took you with him when he decided to learn how to fly was beneath you. You were in a coma and the second after you wake up you sign out AMA probably because you saw that picture of Joey that I left. Then after somehow finding out where I was going, you decided to get on a plane. Well that was just a great idea considering you had a syncopal episode in the middle of a coffee shop at O'Hare. God, do you know how lucky you were it was Bobby who picked you up? If it hadn't no one would have any idea where the hell you were. I realize that risk is all part of who you are but the next time the urge to fly after getting out the hospital hits you I'd like to ask you to remember that I will have to be the one to comfort our son after telling him that his father is dead."  
  
"Are you done?" Jimmy asked.  
  
"Yes. Now I am done."  
  
"Good, cause I'd like to say something. You left. You took our son and you split. No warning and no reason. How the hell do you think that made me feel? Especially after I got that notice telling me that you had soul custody and that I had no legal recourse to make you bring Joey back. Jesus Kim, I know we didn't have the easiest time together and I know that a lot of nasty things went down between us before I married Brooke, but I didn't think you hated me that much."  
  
"I don't hate you Jimmy. I didn't leave because I hated you."  
  
"Then why?" Jimmy was starting to get tired again. "Why would you do that to me? Why would you do that to Joey?"  
  
"Long story."  
  
"I'm listening." He mumbled sleepily.  
  
"Maybe later, huh? Get some sleep. I think transpo is here to take you upstairs." She nodded at one of the guys from transport. "Hey Mike."  
  
"Hey Kim. What are you doing here?"  
  
"I know this guy. Is he going to ICU?"  
  
"No. Medicine."  
  
"Keep your eye on him. He likes to sign out AMA and then go AWOL."  
  
"You got it. See you later Kim."  
  
Kim stood in the doorway to the exam room and watched them roll Jimmy towards the elevators. She sighed, knowing that Joey was waiting in chairs to see his dad.  
  
Time to go face the music.  
  
^!^!^!^!^!^!^!^  
  
"Joey, you're gonna see your dad soon okay? They took him upstairs. We'll go see him as soon as visiting hours start, okay?"  
  
Joey played with his breakfast. "Promise?"  
  
"Promise." Kim said. She checked her watch. "Shoot. Bobby, will you take him up in about an hour? I have to go to work."  
  
"Yeah sure. Uh what about?" He nodded to Charlie.  
  
"Take her to daycare. It's on the third floor. They take drop-ins today."  
  
"Got it."  
  
"And Joey? I haven't had a chance to tell your dad about Charlie yet. I want to be the one to tell him so can you not?"  
  
"Okay Mom."  
  
"Thanks Honey. I'll see you later okay? Be good." Kim said before she took off for the elevators.  
  
"Why don't we go up and get Charlie set up in daycare?" Bobby said. "Then we can go see your dad."  
  
Joey nodded and he followed Bobby to the elevators. 


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24  
  
Kim went to her locker and put her coat away and got changed into scrubs. She'd been trying since she got back from New York to decide how to tell Jimmy about everything. She didn't want to do it, but she knew that Bobby was right. She hadn't been fair to Jimmy. She took the easy way out - literally - and now it was coming back to bite her in the ass in the form of hostility from her son and Jimmy almost killing himself to find Joey. But she knew that once things didn't work out with Brooke and he found out that she was pregnant he'd come back to her. As much as she wanted him back, she didn't want him back like that. He had to WANT to be there.  
  
"Hey Kim! You going to join us today?" asked the head nurse as she peeked into the locker room. "We're about to start going over patients," she finished on a cheerful note.  
  
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Sorry Phyllis. I'm coming," she said as she reached in to grab her stethoscope out of the locker and hooked it around her neck. She headed out to begin her day wondering how things were going between Joey and Jimmy.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Bobby and Joey had finished getting Charlie settled in the hospital's daycare center. It had taken a phone call to Kim for them to accept her because they couldn't just take in kids from someone they didn't know. But, Kim had smoothed things over and everything was set - at least for the next six hours. As Bobby walked out of the center, he was stopped by one of the caretakers.  
  
"What?" Bobby asked, puzzled by what else she could want.  
  
"The diaper bag. You'll need to leave that with us for food and stuff," she said, amused at Bobby's obvious ineptitude in the baby department. He looked at his shoulder and noticed that the bag still hung there. He was so used to having equipment bags from work hanging off his shoulder that he didn't even notice it.  
  
"Oh, yeah," he laughed. "I guess you'll need these more than me today. Thanks," he finished as he and Joey headed out the door, Joey laughing at him.  
  
"Oh I know you're not laughing at me," he said, grabbing Joey and tickling him in the hallway as they headed toward Jimmy's room. He was a little apprehensive about being the one to bring Joey to him, but figured as long as Jimmy got to see him, he wouldn't care who brought him.  
  
They approached Jimmy's room and Bobby told Joey to take a seat outside the room while he saw if Jimmy was ready for him. Joey sat down and Bobby walked toward Jimmy's room.  
  
"Don't forget me out here, okay?" Joey said to him.  
  
"Not a chance, Buddy," Bobby replied, smiling at him. He knew the boy was just as nervous about seeing his Dad as he was happy to be seeing him.  
  
Bobby slowly walked into Jimmy's room and noticed the lights were off and the blinds still closed. He waited while his eyes adjusted to the dark and began to make his way over toward Jimmy. He got halfway across the room when he heard Jimmy's quiet voice.  
  
"Is he with you?" he asked.  
  
"He's right outside, Jimmy. How are you feeling?" he asked him as he reached the bedside.  
  
"I have a wicked headache. That's why the lights are off, but you can open up the blinds at least. Can you bring him in?" he asked nervously.  
  
"Sure. I'll go get him," Bobby replied, stepping toward the window to open blinds a little. He looked over to see that it wasn't too much for Jimmy and Jimmy gave him a slight nod in approval. Bobby turned to go get Joey, but paused.  
  
"You know, Jimmy, he's scared."  
  
"Scared? Of me?" Jimmy asked, shock in his voice.  
  
"Maybe scared is the wrong word," Bobby said, trying to think of the right word. "Nervous or worried is more accurate, I guess."  
  
"About what?" Jimmy asked him.  
  
"I don't know really. He just seems really nervous. Maybe he thinks you're mad at him for leaving. I don't know, just know that he's gonna be a little anxious," he explained.  
  
Jimmy nodded, immediately regretting the movement of his head. "I'm pretty nervous myself, Bobby. What if he thinks I never tried to find him? What if he thinks I just gave up?" he said  
  
"He knows better, Jimmy. He knows you followed Kimmy out here, despite doctor's orders," Bobby told him. "I'll go get him," he said, turning to go.  
  
"Thanks, Bobby," Jimmy said as Bobby walked out the door.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
"Ready, Buddy?" Bobby said to Joey as he was looking through a Sports Illustrated for Kids magazine from about a year ago. Joey put the book down and stood up slowly, walking toward Bobby.  
  
Bobby knelt down so that he was at eye level with Joey. "You want me to come in with you, or you want go in by yourself?"  
  
"Um, maybe if you just come in for a minute," Joey said, pausing. "Just till I find out, you know, how he is."  
  
"Joey, I'll come in with you but know this. He's just as nervous as you are. He thinks you're mad at him for not coming for you. But, you know that he had no idea where you were, right?" Joey nodded.  
  
"How is he? I mean how does he feel today?" Joey asked him.  
  
"He's okay. He's got a bad headache - that's why the lights are off. But, he'll feel even better once he sees you," he finished, standing up and putting a hand on Joey's shoulder as they walked into the room. 


	25. Chapter 25

Ch 25~  
  
Joey timidly walked into Jimmy's hospital room with Bobby right behind him.  
  
"Hey Jimmy? I got someone here who wants to see you."  
  
Jimmy's face broke into a smile. "Joey."  
  
"Hi Dad." Joey said shyly, still not sure if Jimmy was mad at him or not.  
  
"C'mere Champ. Gimme a hug."  
  
Joey smiled as he ran forward and hugged Jimmy. "I missed you Dad."  
  
"I missed you too."  
  
*(*(*(*(*  
  
"Hey Kim? Where's Dr. Wallace?"  
  
"I think he's in sutures. Why?"  
  
"Rinaldo's back."  
  
"What hurts now?"  
  
"I think he said something about a groin pull."  
  
"That's new." Kim raised an eyebrow. "Hey Mia, are those labs back on the woman in four?"  
  
"Not yet. Can you get that? I have to run up and see what radiology is doing about Dr. Fitzpatrick's x-rays."  
  
"Sure." Kim picked up the phone. "ER."  
  
"Is Kim Zambrano there?"  
  
"Speaking."  
  
"Hey, it's me."  
  
"Hi Me."  
  
Bobby laughed. "You busy?"  
  
"Aren't I always? What's up?"  
  
"Nothing. Joey's in with Jimmy so I figured I'd call and see how you were holding up. I charmed Dee into letting me use the phone."  
  
"Well she has always found you charming." Kim teased. "Still say you should've gone out with her when you had the chance."  
  
"Lay off Kim. How are you doing?"  
  
"It's busy down here. It helps keep my mind off of what Joey could be saying to Jimmy."  
  
"You're gonna have to tell him you know."  
  
"I know, I know."  
  
"Maybe even today?"  
  
"Oh yeah that's a great idea. Twelve hours of dealing with whatever happens to blow through the front door and then going up and telling my ex-husband that he knocked me up right before he got married again."  
  
"Kim, he's gonna find out sooner or later. Don't you think it'd be better coming from you?"  
  
Kim groaned. "Do you have to be so damn logical all the time?"  
  
"One of us has to be."  
  
"And Lord knows it ain't ever gonna be me." Kim finished the thought. She let out a sigh. "When are leaving to get ready for your shift?"  
  
"Another hour. You want me to take Joey home?"  
  
"Could you? And pick up Charlie? I'll call Mrs. Morris to let her know you'll be dropping them off and to tell her to feed them because I might be a little late."  
  
"A little late? You might end up sleeping in the lounge after you and Jimmy get finished."  
  
Kim rolled her eyes. "Thanks Bobby. See you later." She hung the phone up.  
  
"Hey Kim, take vitals on the woman in two would you?"  
  
"Sure." She took the chart and headed off to do her job.  
  
*(*(*(*(*  
  
"Hey Joey?" Bobby poked his head in Jimmy's room. "Sorry to break this up guys but we gotta go."  
  
"Now?" Joey looked sad.  
  
"Yeah sorry buddy. Your mom says she wants you to get some sleep but that you can come back tomorrow after school. She's gonna make arrangements so that you can take the bus that drops the kids off that live around here for a few days."  
  
"Really?" Joey smiled.  
  
"Yeah. So you can come here right after school and see your dad."  
  
"Cool." Joey smiled. Then he turned to his dad. "Can I call you before I go to sleep?"  
  
"Yeah you bet." Jimmy smiled as they hugged. "See you later buddy."  
  
"Bye Dad." Joey said as he left.  
  
"Hey Bobby?" Jimmy said before the other man disappeared out the door.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Can you ask Kim to come see me?"  
  
"She'll be up later around seven."  
  
"Oh. Okay. Thanks."  
  
"Get some rest okay Jimmy? You're gonna need it."  
  
"Sure. See ya." Jimmy said, a little confused.  
  
"Bye." Bobby said as the door closed behind him.  
  
*(*(*(*(*  
  
Kim blew out a deep breath as she approached Jimmy's room later that day. It was about five minutes past seven and she had come up after punching out. She hadn't bothered changing her clothes. She got to Jimmy's door and paused. Was she ready to do this?  
  
No.  
  
Did she need to do this?  
  
Yes.  
  
"Here goes nothing." She said before entering Jimmy's room. 


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26  
  
Bobby finished up the dishes as Joey finished his homework at the kitchen table. His friend Peter had brought it home for him from his teacher. Charlie had been fed, bathed and put to bed by 7:30. Bobby finished drying the pots from dinner and was putting them away when he turned to see Joey sitting and staring off into space.  
  
"Hey, that doesn't get the homework done. Are you stuck on something?" he asked, sitting down in the chair next to him.  
  
"No," Joey replied. "I was just thinking about Dad. Do you think he'll stay here now?"  
  
"I don't know, Joey," answered Bobby. He didn't know how to answer this one. "Dad's job is in New York. They need him there, but I really don't know what he's gonna do," he finished. Bobby thought of all the nights that he'd spent doing just this and how he'd miss it if Jimmy took over. He remembered all the nights he'd spent here, helping Kim with the new baby. He even had his own room. Sure, it was the guest room, but it was his whenever he wanted it. Sometimes it felt like he spent more time here than at his own apartment.  
  
Joey thought for a moment and then started doodling on his homework. "No television until that homework gets done. And you need a bath before you go to bed," he added.  
  
Joey made a face and started back on his homework. After he finished his bath, did his homework and watched a little television, Bobby was herding him to his room upstairs across from Charlie's when Joey suddenly remembered that he told Jimmy he'd call him. "Bobby, I have to call Dad. I promised him. I don't want him to think I disappeared again," he said innocently.  
  
Bobby went into Kim's room and grabbed the cordless phone and brought it back into Joey's room. He sat on the bed next to Joey and dialed the hospital. When the operator answered, he asked for Jimmy's room. He waited for Jimmy to pick up to make sure he'd gotten the right room.  
  
"Hey, Jimmy. It's Bobby. I've got someone here that won't go to sleep until he talks to you," he said. He handed the phone to Joey and walked over to close the blinds in Joey's room. He listened to Joey talking and thought how much happier he sounded. A lot happier than he'd heard him in a while. Just as he finished closing the blinds, Charlie let out a yell, followed by a cry. Bobby hurried across the hall into Charlie's room to see what was wrong and get her back to sleep. After a couple of minutes of continued crying, despite having her diaper changed, Bobby thought that maybe she wanted a bottle. He brought her out into the hall and started down the stairs to warm up a bottle and stopped cold when he heard what Joey was saying.  
  
"Oh, that's Charlie crying. She wants to eat again," he said innocently and then realized that his mother didn't want Jimmy to know about her yet. Bobby just about ran back into the room and saw the look of fear on Joey's face. He took the phone from Joey and said, "Jimmy. Joey's falling asleep so I'm gonna have to hang up," he said quickly, hoping that Jimmy didn't hear what Joey said.  
  
"Bobby!" came Jimmy's voice through the phone. "Who's Charlie and why is she there?"  
  
"Um, she's visiting. Kim should be up to see you soon and she can tell you all about it. Goodnight. I'll bring Joey over after school tomorrow. It's my day off," he said before he hung up.  
  
Bobby looked down at Joey who looked ready to break out in tears. "Sorry, Bobby. It just slipped out," he said, looking at the floor.  
  
"Not a problem," said Bobby. "It's gonna come out sooner or later anyway. Sooner rather than later I think," he thought to himself. "C'mon. Under the covers. School comes early tomorrow," he said, juggling Charlie and tucking Joey in. He turned off the light and closed the door and headed downstairs to warm up a bottle for Charlie.  
  
He decided he wasn't going to call Kim and tell her that Joey had mentioned Charlie. "Why give her time to think up an excuse? It's about time for everything to come out," he said to Charlie in a sing-song voice as he waited for the bottle to heat up.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kim paused at the door to Jimmy's room. She'd had a rough shift, but she knew she couldn't put this off any longer. She also knew that Jimmy was waiting for her. She peeked around the corner and saw him dozing in the bed, the light on the bedside table casting a low light on him. "God, he's still gorgeous," she thought to herself. She took a few steps in thinking that she could always tell him that he was sound asleep when she got there and she didn't want to wake him up. She turned off his light and started to tiptoe out of the room.  
  
"Not so fast, Kimmy," she heard, anger in his voice. She stopped dead in her tracks and slowly turned to face him.  
  
"I thought you were sleeping. I figured I'd just stop up before work tomorrow and let you get some rest tonight," she said, smiling.  
  
"No way I'm waiting another day," he said, not smiling at all. "I want to know why Kim? Why did you just leave like that and keep Joey from me?"  
  
Her heart sank at the hurt she heard in his voice. "Jimmy. I just didn't know what to do. I guess I still wasn't over you and you were marrying Brooke," she tried.  
  
"You knew for months - before I got shot - that Brooke and I were going to get married. Why take off all of a sudden?" he asked, the anger showing no sign of disappearing.  
  
"Jimmy. I was confused. After that night we had together, I guess I kind of got my hopes up and then you went ahead and married Brooke like nothing ever happened. I just couldn't handle it," she said, starting to get upset all over again.  
  
"Kim! That night was weeks before we got married and I thought that you were sorry it ever happened. I mean, you just let Brooke swoop in when I got shot and you stepped aside. I thought that's what you wanted," he said, getting more agitated. He started getting more pain in his head, but he didn't want to stop the conversation. Not until he was sure he had the reason behind Kim's disappearance.  
  
He started to sit up and Kim immediately noticed him breaking out in a sweat and getting pale. She rushed over to him and coaxed him to lie back down. "Jimmy, please just lay down. You're making yourself worse," she said as he settled back. He closed his eyes for a moment until the dizziness passed and the nausea subsided. Kim started to walk toward the door. "Look, maybe that's enough for tonight. Why don't you get some rest and I'll come up before my shift tomorrow," she said as she grabbed her purse off the chair and started to head out the door. She was stopped by two words.  
  
"Who's Charlie?" Jimmy asked. She turned quickly and looked at him. He saw that he'd struck a nerve - or something. "Kim, who is Charlie?"  
  
"How do you know Charlie?" she asked him, shocked.  
  
"I talked to Joey on the phone before he went to bed and I heard a baby crying. He told me it was Charlie. That she just wanted to eat again. Kim, WHO IS CHARLIE?" he persisted, despite the growing pain and nausea.  
  
Kim walked over to him slowly, trying to figure out how to tell him without upsetting him. She finally decided that no matter how she said it, he was going to be upset. She had hidden his child from him. She hadn't even told him about her. She looked at his face as tears sprang to her eyes. She put a hand on his arm and sensing that she was about to tell him something very hard, Jimmy covered her hand with his.  
  
"Jimmy, Charlie is, Charlie is short for Charlotte. She's my daughter," she said as a tear escaped down her cheek. "Charlie is YOUR daughter," she said quietly, a sob escaping her throat.  
  
Jimmy drew his hand and arm away from Kim in shock. "What?!" he just about screamed. "Kim, how could you keep this from me. What gave you the right to keep her from me?"  
  
"Jimmy, I'm sorry. I know now that it was a mistake. I just didn't know how to tell you. I didn't find out that you and Brooke broke up until after she was born and I didn't want to be the one to break up your marriage. I didn't want you to hate Charlie - or me," she finished, openly crying as she reached into her bag and took out some pictures that she kept there. She handed Jimmy the pictures and he too began to cry.  
  
"Kim. How could I hate my own child? I could never," he said, stopping suddenly and dropping the pictures as Kim noticed his hands shaking.  
  
She looked at his face and noticed the pained look. She grabbed his hand and pushed the call button with her other hand. "Jimmy. Can you hear me? Please, Jimmy," she said as the nurse came in.  
  
"What happened?" the nurse asked as she picked up the phone to page the doctor on call for the night.  
  
"He got upset. I tried to calm him down, but he just started shaking," Kim explained.  
  
"He's having a seizure," she finished telling the doctor into the phone and hung up.  
  
"No! It's not a seizure. He's looking at me. I know it's not a seizure. It's just pain. He's in terrible pain," she said as she stroked Jimmy's hair, trying to calm him down. The nurse gave him an injection through his IV.  
  
"Jimmy, it's okay," Kim whispered into his year. "Just try to relax and the pain will start to go away. Just relax. I promise I won't run anymore," she said soothingly and she could feel him start to relax until he finally fell asleep with the help of the pain medication that he'd refused earlier so that he would be awake for when Kim got off work. A moment later the doctor rushed in and checked him over. He spoke to Kim and told her that it wasn't a seizure, just as she tried to tell the nurse.  
  
"We're going to keep him knocked out until morning at least," the doctor told her. She left her number with the nurse's station and told them to call her for any change or if Jimmy woke up asking for her. 


	27. Chapter 27

Ch 27  
  
"Did you even go to sleep?"  
  
Kim smiled a little when she heard Bobby's voice behind her the next morning.  
  
"I think so. I just didn't stay that way for long." Kim scooted over and gave Bobby some room on the back steps. "Cold out here for March."  
  
"Did you call the hospital?" He asked, joining her.  
  
"Yeah. The duty nurse said he had no further episodes during the night. I talked to one of the doctors. He said that they're gonna do another CT today." Kim sighed. "I swear if he has done permanent damage to himself by following me out here I will never forgive myself."  
  
"Not your fault."  
  
"Isn't it? I went to see if he was okay and then I didn't even stay and talk to him. I just left behind a picture of Joey. I should've known he'd find a way to find me after that." She closed her eyes. "I lied."  
  
"When?"  
  
"To myself, to you, to Jimmy. I keep telling everyone that I didn't want to ruin his marriage. I wanted to give him a chance to make it work with Brooke."  
  
"And that's not true?"  
  
"Not completely. The complete truth is that I didn't want to get sucked in again. It took a lot to leave him the first time. I didn't think I'd be able to do it again if it came down to doing it a second time. And I didn't want him there because of Charlie. I wanted him there because he wanted to be there." Kim shook her head. "I made a real mess of things didn't I?"  
  
"Well, yeah kinda." Bobby admitted.  
  
"Thank you Bobby."  
  
"You asked. What was I supposed to do? Lie?"  
  
"Yes, if you're my friend."  
  
"No because I'm your friend, I'm not gonna lie to you." Bobby smiled.  
  
"I hate you."  
  
"No you don't."  
  
Kim giggled and then she said, "I told Jimmy last night that I wasn't going to run away."  
  
"Did you mean it?"  
  
"Well, I hear L.A.'s nice this time of year."  
  
"Kim."  
  
"Yeah I meant it." Kim turned to him. "I'm not going anywhere anymore. I may regret it in the end but I'm staying put."  
  
"Good. Now c'mon let's get some food going. I'll bet Joey's hungry when he wakes up."  
  
*(*(*(*(*  
  
A little later, at about six-thirty, Kim pushed Jimmy's door open quietly. He was still sleeping. She took a piece of paper from her purse and wrote something down. She put the piece of paper on his chest and then tiptoed back out of the room.  
  
*(*(*(*(*  
  
Jimmy woke about an hour later. He immediately noticed the piece of paper on his chest. He picked it up and read it.  
  
iYou were sleeping and I didn't want to wake you. I'll try and make it back up around noon but if I can't I'll be back around seven. Joey will be back to see you around three. -Kim/i  
  
Jimmy folded the piece of paper back up and set it on the nightstand. He was still mad about the information Kim had shared with him last night but he knew that shouting would not be the best way to discuss things. They'd do it calmly and rationally.  
  
Even if it killed them.  
  
*(*(*(*(*  
  
"Hi Mom."  
  
Kim looked up. "Hey buddy. You going to see your dad?"  
  
"Yeah. Bobby just wanted to say hi to you first."  
  
"That was nice of him. Here. We'll keep your bag under the desk down here while you visit your dad, okay?"  
  
"Okay." Joey handed it over and Kim stowed it under the admit desk.  
  
"Tell your dad I said hello. Hey, how about I bring home burgers later?"  
  
"Okay." Joey smiled.  
  
"Okay. Go on."  
  
"Joey, go press the button, I'll be right there." Bobby said.  
  
"Okay." Joey ran down the hall to the elevators.  
  
"What?"  
  
"How'd it go?"  
  
"He was asleep. I'll talk to him after my shift."  
  
Bobby nodded. "Okay. Hey bring me a burger too."  
  
"I'll think about it. Better go before he goes by himself."  
  
Bobby nodded and walked down the hall to meet Joey.  
  
*(*(*(*(*  
  
"Do you have any sevens?"  
  
"Go Fish." Joey said.  
  
Jimmy smiled. He'd missed this.  
  
"Dad?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Are you staying?"  
  
"Staying?"  
  
"Here?"  
  
"In the hospital? No."  
  
"I mean Chicago."  
  
"Oh. I don't know."  
  
"Chicago's nice and they have a good fire department."  
  
"Hey, c'mere." Jimmy patted a place beside him and Joey hopped up. "I promise you that nothing is ever gonna keep us apart again, okay?"  
  
"Okay." Joey hugged his dad. 


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28  
  
Kim had a break and decided to wander up to Jimmy's room and watch him with Joey. She was standing quietly in the doorway listening to the conversation between the two.  
  
"So, how's school going, Joey?" Jimmy asked him as he prepared to deal another round of cards.  
  
Joey gave Jimmy the same obligatory shrug that every parent got when they asked that question. Jimmy chuckled and rubbed the top of Joey's head. "Playin' any sports?"  
  
"I played some baseball last year. Did okay. I played football too. We were undefeated, but we lost the superbowl," he said to Jimmy, lighting up at talking about it.  
  
"Your Mom let you play football?" Jimmy asked, not believing it.  
  
"Well, I had some help from Bobby. He talked her into it. Promised her that he'd go to every practice to make sure that I wasn't going to get hurt. Pretty embarrassing actually," he said, rolling his eyes. Kim laughed to herself, remembering how they had double-teamed her to let him play. Bobby kept his promise though. He brought Joey to every practice, no matter how cold it was. "Mom came to the games on the weekends because she didn't have to work," he told Jimmy. He started to laugh and added, "She was the loudest Mom there." Even though no one was watching, she blushed at the revelation.  
  
"Yeah, well she's always been your biggest fan," Jimmy said, touching her heart.  
  
Someone dropped a tray down the hall and both Joey and Jimmy looked up to see Kim standing there.  
  
"Hey," Jimmy said smiling.  
  
"Hey yourself. You look a lot better than yesterday," she said, walking into the room. She was carrying Joey's school bag and some burgers from the cafeteria.  
  
"I feel a lot better. I guess that night's rest really helped a lot," he said, trying to see into the bag of food Kim had given Joey to see if there was enough for him. He was getting his appetite back. He reached over and grabbed a French fry out of the bag.  
  
"Yeah, well, what's the doctor say?" Kim asked him.  
  
"He said that I'll probably be out of here in a day or so," Jimmy reported, looking at her. "But he said no flying for at least a month."  
  
"Well, I have a spare bedroom at my house you can use while you get to know your daughter," she said, head bowed and looking up through her hair for his reaction.  
  
"Yeah, about that. You think you could bring her by tonight?" he asked. He'd been dying to see her ever since he found out about her.  
  
Kim thought for a moment. "If you promise not to get overexcited, I'll go get her from the daycare center downstairs," she said in warning.  
  
"I promise," Jimmy said.  
  
"I mean it Jimmy. If you're going to flip out and make yourself worse again, I'm not bringing her or Joey back here until you're well enough."  
  
"Yes, ma'am," Jimmy said, looking at Joey and rolling his eyes. "Some things never change I see," he said to Joey.  
  
"Nope," said Joey, ducking the fake slap from Kim.  
  
"Okay, I'll be back in a couple of minutes. Joey, give Dad one of those burgers. And then get started on your homework. You can use the table for a desk," she said as she walked out of the room.  
  
She walked away, listening to the two of them talk. Jimmy was saying, "So, how is it having a baby sister?"  
  
"It's okay, but she's young yet," Joey said and Kim heard Jimmy laugh as she walked out of earshot.  
  
She thought to herself, "Please let this work out this time, God. But, please don't let me fall for it again if it's not meant to be." 


	29. Chapter 29

Ch 29  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hey Jimmy, it's me. I got beeped the minute I stepped out of the elevator onto the pedes floor. I'm sorry. We just got slammed. Keep an eye on Joey. Make sure he does his homework. Hold on." She took the phone from her mouth.  
  
Jimmy heard her yell down the hallway. "I'm coming!"  
  
"I gotta go. Tell Joey I might be late picking him up."  
  
"Sure. Bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Jimmy hung the phone up and looked at Joey. "Looks like we're stuck with each other for a while pal. That okay with you?"  
  
"Did Mom get slammed?"  
  
"The department did."  
  
"Mom might."  
  
Jimmy raised an eyebrow. "Joey, what are you talking about?"  
  
"Mom sometimes gets hurt when she tries to break up fights."  
  
"Oh." Jimmy nodded. "Anything serious?"  
  
"Just bruises." Joey said innocently.  
  
"Okay. Hey, are you almost done with that?"  
  
"Uh-huh." Joey finished writing and then closed his notebook.  
  
"Good cause I thought maybe we could go downstairs to pedes and you can show me which one Charlie is."  
  
"Okay." Joey frowned. "I don't think I can push your wheelchair."  
  
"It's okay. We'll get a nurse." Jimmy pressed his buzzer.  
  
~^~^~^~^~^~  
  
Kim rubbed her neck as she walked up to the admit desk. "Anyone left?"  
  
"Fortunately no. Last guy went straight up to the O.R."  
  
"Thank God."  
  
"Hey Kim, aren't you off?" Bobby said as he and Theresa brought a gurney down the hall from a trauma room.  
  
"Yeah. I just gotta go collect my kids." She checked her watch and groaned. "Although I might as well just stake out an exam room and we can all sleep there."  
  
"Go home. Take the El. See you tomorrow night." Phyllis said giving a chart to the night desk clerk, Casey.  
  
"Right. Night guys." She went in and grabbed her purse. Then she got on the elevator and went to pedes to get Charlie. As she passed by the window to the daycare she stopped short. Jimmy and Joey were on the floor playing with Charlie. She went down to the door and leaned against the frame.  
  
"Please tell me you know him. I just managed to get a hold of your desk clerk and she said you were on your way up. I tried before but I kept getting put on hold." One of the workers said coming over to her.  
  
"It's fine. He's her father." Kim said quietly.  
  
"Oh. Good. Okay."  
  
"Yeah sorry I'm so late. Huge traffic accident. We got slammed with most of the victims."  
  
"It's okay."  
  
"I'll take her home now." Kim walked over to them. "Hey guys."  
  
"Hi Mom." Joey said.  
  
"Hey Kimmy." Jimmy said looking up. "You look exhausted."  
  
"Really? Then I feel better then I look." She bent down and scooped up Charlie. "Now this one is tired. Sorry. I would have had Bobby pick her up but he got pulled in at the last minute to cover for his partner. His wife went into labor this morning."  
  
She caught tail-end of Jimmy's look and shook her head. It looked like she was going to have some jealousy issues to deal with in the next few days.  
  
And probably not just from Jimmy, she thought to herself.  
  
Her mother was right. She did always make things harder on herself then they had to be. 


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 30  
  
2 days later-  
  
The Captain came out of his office and into the kitchen where the fire and EMS crew sat finishing up dinner.  
  
"So, what's the story, Cap?" asked Billy Walsh.  
  
"Well, as you know that was Doherty. He's still in Chicago. He got discharged from the hospital today, but the doctor doesn't want him doing any traveling for like a week," the Captain explained.  
  
"So?" asked Alex, waiting for her boss to continue.  
  
"So, he's not gonna be able to come back to work for a couple of weeks at least - until he's cleared by the neurologist - and he's gonna stay out there for the two weeks so he can spend time with Joey and." the Captain paused, not sure if he should tell anyone. But, Jimmy didn't tell him to keep it quiet and the crew had to know that he might not be coming back. He looked around the table at his crew.  
  
Finally, Lombardo spoke up. "And?"  
  
The Captain took a deep breath. "And he wants to spend the time with Joey, Kim and his baby daughter," the Captain finished, looking at all the mouths that had dropped open.  
  
"Daughter?!" D.K. said the loudest.  
  
Carlos was the first besides D.K. to make a sound and, as usual, it was the wrong thing to do because what came out was just a giggle. "Doherty's got another kid? Damn, that guy really gets around. Does anyone remember him mentioning some fling in Chicago at least nine months ago?" he said, with a smile on his face, trying to contain his laughter.  
  
The entire crew looked at him. Doc just shook his head in amazement at how inconsiderate and dense his partner could be.  
  
"Did it every occur to you that Kim left here in a hurry and Jimmy found her out there?" Alex said to Carlos, hoping that he would catch on to what everyone else had already figured out - that Kim was pregnant when she left and that was why she left.  
  
But, Carlos' next words threw a whole other light on the situation. "Does anyone remember that Bobby left in a hurry too and found her out there too? Maybe it's his kid," he said sarcastically, and then smiled realizing that he had a valid point.  
  
Everyone just looked around at each other.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Kim had just finished bringing in Jimmy's stuff out of the car. Joey had helped get Jimmy inside and to the couch.  
  
"Are you sure you're okay to go up and down the stairs, Jimmy?" Kim asked him again. "'Cause I can set you up on the couch until you feel better."  
  
"No, Kimmy. It's okay. The dizziness isn't as bad and as long as I go slowly I'll be fine on the stairs. Besides, I don't want to mess up any routines you might have going on around here," he finished, resting his elbow on Joey's head like an armrest. Jimmy looked around and took in the house. "Nice place. How are you affording it on nurse's pay?" Jimmy asked her.  
  
"Well, things aren't quite as expensive out here in Chicago as they are in New York," she explained. "And, I'm just renting it from some guy who went into the Peace Corps for a few years. One of the girls at work heard about it and it was really reasonable and in a good school system for Joey," she said, hoping for his approval on her decisions so far. Jimmy nodded his head and tried to stifle a yawn. "You're probably exhausted," Kim said as she put Charlie in her swing for a little while. "Joey, why don't you take your Dad upstairs so he can get some rest," she suggested. "You really shouldn't overdue it Jimmy," she said.  
  
"Yeah, I am kind of beat. Are you okay down here? 'Cause I can probably hang down here and help you with the kids and stuff," he said, walking over to Charlie and bending over to look at her closer.  
  
He couldn't believe how much like him she looked. At first, he thought there might be some possibility that Bobby was her father, but then he'd seen her and knew in an instant that she was his. He thought back to that night before he married Brooke. They had been talking and, as usual, their talking led to their feelings for each other coming to the surface. Before either one knew it, they were in Kim's room and things went farther than anyone had expected.  
  
Kim's voice in answer to his question brought him back to the present, "No, Bobby's coming over after work and he usually watches them while I get dinner ready," she explained, not noticing the look of jealousy come over Jimmy's face as she walked out into the kitchen to put the groceries they had picked up on the way home. 


	31. Chapter 31

Ch 31  
  
"You know what's going to happen if he stays there."  
  
"That will not happen."  
  
"You have never been able to resist him, why should now be any different?"  
  
"Because I'm different okay? It's not just about him and me anymore."  
  
"Kimmy, it's you and it's Jimmy. You have never been able to keep your clothes on around him."  
  
"Melanie, I am hanging up now. Call me back later okay?" Kim pressed the off button on her phone and put it on the counter. "Grr!" When the doorbell rang a few seconds she shouted at it. "What?"  
  
Bobby poked his head in. "Kim? You okay?"  
  
"Sorry. Come on in. Why are you ringing the doorbell?"  
  
"Didn't want to interrupt anything." Bobby came over to the counter and sampled the dinner Kim had taken out of the over while she was talking to Melanie.  
  
"Oh not you too."  
  
"Not me too, what?"  
  
"Melanie and my mother think it's an incredibly bad idea for Jimmy to stay here."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"'Cause they think I'm going to sleep with him. Apparently you are under the same impression."  
  
"Kim-"  
  
"I can control myself around him. Why doesn't anybody get that?"  
  
"Kim-"  
  
"I mean, yeah okay, I have never been all that good at resisting him and sure there have been times when I've shown up on his doorstep but that is all behind me. That's over."  
  
"Kim-" Bobby tried once more.  
  
"I know how to say no to him. I mean we're not even sleeping on the same floor of the house. His room is upstairs with the kids and mine is down here."  
  
"Kim?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"All I meant was that I didn't want to interrupt dinner."  
  
"Oh." Kim said. "I just finished."  
  
"Why don't I set the table and you go get Joey, Charlie, and Jimmy for dinner?"  
  
"Yeah. Okay. Good idea." Kim walked over and went up the stairs.  
  
Bobby shook his head. This was gonna be interesting.  
  
~^~^~^~^~^~  
  
Dinner was, to say the least, tense. Every time one of the kids asked Bobby for something Jimmy's grip on his knife and fork got tighter and every time Kim tried to get something Jimmy hopped up and got it for her which ticked off Bobby a little more each time.  
  
Kim was grateful to make it to dessert without bloodshed.  
  
"So how'd you managed to get today off?" Bobby asked as they cleared the table. Jimmy was entertaining Charlie.  
  
"I promised to take a night shift next Saturday."  
  
"You want me to relieve Mrs. Morris? Or is Christine sitting for Joey and Charlie?" Bobby asked without thinking.  
  
"She doesn't need a sitter." Jimmy said. "I'll be here."  
  
Kim didn't turn around but she could imagine Bobby and Jimmy were glaring at one another.  
  
"Yeah, you'll be here. Right. Sorry." Bobby said. "Hey Kim? I think I'm gonna go."  
  
Kim turned around. "So soon? You never go this early."  
  
"Kinda tired."  
  
Kim nodded. "I'll walk you to the El. Hey Joey? Start getting ready for bed okay? You don't need a bath but I want you in your P.J.'s."  
  
"Okay Mom."  
  
"Thanks Sweetie." Kim took her jacket and followed Bobby out the door. They made it to the sidewalk before she spoke. "It won't work you know."  
  
"What?"  
  
"You're trying to back off. I won't let you." Kim said simply. "You're not disappearing from my life Bobby." She looked at him seriously. "I need you to much for that."  
  
"I'm not their father."  
  
"No, you're not. But you are Charlie's godfather and Joey loves you just as much and in the same way he does Jimmy. You're our family. It's as simple as that."  
  
Bobby just smiled and shook his head. "Mel's right. You are stubborn."  
  
Kim smiled. "This coming from you."  
  
"We're both stubborn."  
  
"Yes we are." A train passed overhead. "Sounds like your ride's here."  
  
"Call me tomorrow." Bobby kissed her forehead. "Bye."  
  
"Bye." Kim said before she walked back home. 


	32. Chapter 32

Chapter 32  
  
It had been about a week since Jimmy came to stay with Kim, Joey and Charlie. He was making great progress and was due to see the neurologist in two days for follow-up. His minor scrapes and bruises had healed, but he was still having some pretty bad headaches.  
  
It was 3:00 and he'd just finished giving Charlie a bottle of juice and laying her down for a short nap. Joey should be coming through the door after school any minute and Jimmy took the spare time to grab a shower and shave. Just as he stepped out of the shower, the phone rang.  
  
"Hello," he said into the phone.  
  
"Hi Jimmy. How's it going?" Kim asked from the other end of the phone.  
  
"As good as it was the last time you called. What was that fifteen minutes ago?" he said sarcastically.  
  
"I'm just worried. I don't want you to overdue too much," Kim said.  
  
"Kim. I'm fine. I told you that. Just get to work and don't worry about us. I know where you are if I need you," he said, trying to reassure her.  
  
"Okay. Bobby's number is by the phone if you need him. And, he'll be by at 5:30 to pick up Joey for football practice at 6:00, but Joey knows he can only go if his homework is all done," she said to Jimmy.  
  
Immediately Jimmy felt his stomach tighten at the mention of Bobby's name. He knew that he'd been there to help Kim through everything, but that wasn't his choice. He didn't know anything about what she was going through or he would have been on the first plane out here. And the fact that Bobby was still doing so much for HIS kids and Kim - while he was right here - was starting to grate on him.  
  
"Kim. I told you that I was taking Joey to football practice tonight," he argued.  
  
"Jimmy, I just don't think that's a good idea. You're still not 100 percent and Bobby knows the routine and everything," Kim tried to argue back.  
  
"Kim. I'm Joey's father and I'M taking him to practice. I already have a bag packed for Charlie and I can play with her at the playground while Joey's practicing on the other side of the field. Kim, I want to do this - I NEED to do this," he insisted.  
  
"Maybe if Bobby picked you all up and went with you?" Kim tried.  
  
"No. That's why I brought you to work today. So I would have your car to take Joey and Charlie to practice," he said.  
  
"I thought that was supposed to be in case you needed to go get Joey from school if he got sick or something," she countered.  
  
"Well, yeah. That too. Kim, really. I'm fine and I'm taking my son and daughter to the park and that's final," he said hanging up the phone just as he heard the front door open and the now familiar plop of Joey's book bag in the front hallway.  
  
"Hang it up!" Jimmy yelled out cheerfully to him from the kitchen.  
  
"Oh yeah. Sorry, Bob- I mean Dad," Joey replied. Another notch of tightness turned in Jimmy's stomach. He took a deep breath and put a smile on his face as he headed out to the front door to greet Joey.  
  
"So, how was your day at school?" he asked him as the two walked into the living room.  
  
"Okay. The usual stuff. Mrs. O'Neil had her baby last night so she's out for the rest of the year," he said, with an evil grin on his face.  
  
Jimmy smiled, knowing exactly what Joey was thinking. "I hope you and your classmates aren't planning on giving the substitute a hard time. Because you know, the substitutes that fill in for teachers that are on maternity leave are just as hard if not harder than your real teacher. They are real teachers and they don't take any garbage from you kids," he said, chuckling.  
  
"I know, I know. Mrs. O'Neil said the same thing last week," Joey said, rolling his eyes.  
  
"Okay," Jimmy said abruptly. "Snack is in the kitchen and the table is ready for homework. Don't forget you have practice tonight and you can't go unless your homework's done first."  
  
"What time is Bobby coming to get me? Practice starts at 6:00," he asked Jimmy, sitting down and opening his book bag to start his homework.  
  
Jimmy took another deep breath and said, "I'm taking you to practice tonight. I wanna see how you're doing."  
  
"Great!" Joey said with excitement. "Well, at least somebody seems glad that I'm here," Jimmy thought to himself.  
  
"Get busy," Jimmy said, pointing to the papers in front of Joey. "I hear Charlie," he said going to get her.  
  
As he climbed the stairs to Charlie's room he stopped in the middle of the stairs to regain his balance. "Must've moved too fast," he thought, pushing the feeling away and continuing up to get Charlie. 


	33. Chapter 33

Ch 33  
  
Bobby knocked on the door to Kim's house at about quarter after five. It still felt a little weird to knock but he figured with Jimmy there he shouldn't just walk right in anymore.  
  
He smiled as best he could when Jimmy pulled open the door and scowled at him.  
  
"What are you doing here?"  
  
"I'm here for Joey."  
  
"Kim didn't call you?" Jimmy asked. He still hadn't let Bobby in.  
  
"Uh, no. Should she have?"  
  
"Yeah. I'm taking Joey to practice today. Sorry you wasted your time coming over."  
  
"No big deal. I can watch Charlie while you take Joey to practice."  
  
"I'm taking Charlie with us. I've got her bag packed already." Jimmy said before Bobby could make a move to enter the house.  
  
"Jimmy, maybe you should relax a little. You did just get out of the hospital."  
  
"And maybe you should back off. This is my family. They are my kids."  
  
"They're also Kim's and until she tells me otherwise I'm gonna keep coming around."  
  
"Even if it makes things harder and more confusing for everyone else?" Jimmy asked.  
  
"I don't think I'm confusing anyone."  
  
"Aren't you? You're still around even though they have their father back. I realize that you were a big part of their lives for the last couple of years and I appreciate you taking care of things Bobby but you're not needed anymore."  
  
"Maybe not. But I am still wanted."  
  
"Not by me."  
  
"Fine. But I'm still wanted by Kim and Joey and Charlie."  
  
"You are not apart of this family." Jimmy gritted.  
  
"I am. I'm Kim's family. I'm also Charlie's godfather."  
  
"And I'm her father. Look Bobby, let me just spell it out for you. But out of this family." With that Jimmy shut the door.  
  
~^~^~^~^~^~  
  
"Hello?" Kim called as she walked in the front door a couple hours later. The house was silent. She hit the answering machine button and listened in silence to the message. Just as it ended Jimmy came through the door with Joey and Charlie in tow.  
  
"Hi Mom." Joey called.  
  
"Hi Sweetie, how was practice?" She said with a smile.  
  
"It was good. Are you gonna be at the game on Saturday?"  
  
"What time is it?"  
  
"It's at three."  
  
"Yeah I'll be there. Why don't you go shower and I'll order dinner. You feel like Chinese?"  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
"Okay." Kim smiled. Once Joey was upstairs she turned to Jimmy. "Is Charlie asleep?"  
  
"Yeah. She fell asleep on the way home." Jimmy said as he put Charlie's carrier on the table.  
  
"Good. Let's go out back." Kim went for the back door and opened it.  
  
Jimmy rose an eyebrow but he followed. "Everything okay?"  
  
"No." Kim turned around. "What the hell gives you the right to tell my best friend to but out of my life?"  
  
"Bobby run and tattle on me?" Jimmy said mockingly.  
  
"You'd love that wouldn't you? No. It would seem our son pressed memo when Bobby was here before. Every word you and he said was well recorded. Jimmy, I realize I did the wrong thing keeping you out of Joey and Charlie's lives but you do not get to take over just like that."  
  
"If Bobby means that much to you why didn't you marry him?"  
  
"Maybe I should have. It's not like he didn't ask."  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"He asked twice."  
  
"And you said no. Why?"  
  
"Because Charlie's not his and because he deserves his own children."  
  
"You didn't think you'd be able to sleep with him?"  
  
Kim just looked at him. "One of us has a very short memory." She said before she went back into the house. Jimmy heard the slam of her bedroom door a few minutes later. 


	34. Chapter 34

Ch 34  
  
It was a little past midnight when Kim came out of her room. She'd ordered Chinese from her extension and even though Joey had asked her to come out and eat with them she'd stayed in her room and had only opened it to give Joey a hug and kiss goodnight. Jimmy had tried to talk to her but she slammed the door in his face. But try as she might she couldn't ignore the fact that she was hungry.  
  
She heated up some wonton soup and sat down on the couch. It had started to rain a little while ago and now it was coming down pretty hard. She walked over to the window to take a look outside. All was quiet on the street, lit only by the streetlights. She shivered at the dampness and pulled her robe around her tighter. As she walked back toward the couch she noticed that the deadbolt on the front door was unlocked. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that the lock on the doorknob was unlocked also. She pushed back the curtain covering the window on the door and noticed a lone figure jogging down the road toward her house.  
  
She didn't have to look twice, she'd recognize that build and athleticism anywhere. It was Jimmy. He always used to go out for a run when he was upset, and God knew he had enough to be upset about lately. She watched as he ran past the front of the house and continued on - obviously whatever was bothering him had not been resolved in his mind and he kept running.  
  
She finished her soup and was flipping through a magazine waiting for Jimmy to get back. She wanted to make sure he was all right and she decided she should probably talk to him about earlier. As she sat and read, the only sound coming from the clock on the wall behind her, she heard Charlie stir and whimper upstairs. She listened for a moment to see if her daughter would fall back to sleep on her own. She looked at the clock and a flicker of worry crossed her brow as she noted that Jimmy was not back yet. Charlie stirred some more and Kim went up stairs to see if she was okay. She walked into the darkened room, lit only by a nightlight shining in the corner. She reached in the crib and automatically felt her to see if she had a fever. She adjusted the covers and put a hand on Charlie's back. As always, the feel of Kim's hand on her back comforted the child and Kim heard her fall sound asleep as the deepness of her breathing changed.  
  
As she was closing the door to Charlie's room and about to open Joey's door to check on him, she heard a faint knock on the front door downstairs. She frowned, wondering why Jimmy was knocking. She was pretty sure that she hadn't locked the door up while she was down there, but maybe she did it automatically without thinking. She started down the stairs and saw the flash of emergency lights in front of her house. A feeling of dread settled over her as she hurried toward the door.  
  
She opened the door and there she found Jimmy being supported by two police officers.  
  
"Ma'am. We found this man down the road, sitting on the curb in the rain. He said he's staying here and was out running when he suddenly didn't feel well. Do you know him?" asked the officer.  
  
"Um, yes. Thank you, Officer. Jimmy? What's wrong?" she asked moving aside as the officers helped Jimmy into the house and onto a chair in the living room.  
  
He sat down heavily and was holding his head as if he was trying to hold it together. "He just said that he's recovering from an injury he sustained while fighting a fire and has some pain in his head. Do you want us to call for an ambulance?" asked the younger of the two officers.  
  
"Jimmy? What do you think?" Kim asked him.  
  
He slowly shook his head no and finally said, "I just overdid it. It's starting to go away. I'll be okay. Thanks, guys."  
  
"No problem, Sir. Take it easy. Ma'am," said the older officer as they left to return to patrol.  
  
Kim walked the officers to the door. "Thank you for bringing him home," Kim said. The officer nodded and she closed and locked the door. She turned and walked back over to Jimmy, who sat with his head leaning back against the headrest of the chair, eyes closed and brow furrowed with pain. He was soaking wet and she noticed him shiver.  
  
"Jimmy? What can I do for you?" she asked as she grabbed the afghan from the back of the couch to wrap around him.  
  
"I just need to rest. I'm sorry Kimmy," he said. She wasn't sure what he was apologizing for.  
  
"Sorry for what?" she asked as she felt his forehead and noticed a slight fever. "You've got a fever. I'm going to get you some Tylenol and a cup of hot tea," she said standing up.  
  
He reached out and grabbed her hand. "I'm sorry for being such a jerk," he said quietly.  
  
She covered his hand with hers and said, "Jimmy, you were just upset before. We both were. I'm sorry I did what I did - leaving with Joey like that. I knew what you'd do if you found out I was pregnant. I just didn't think it was fair not give you and Brooke a fighting chance," Kim said, trying not to cry.  
  
"No, I don't mean earlier. I mean for being such a jerk back then - when we were together. Kim, I just.... I'm sorry. I miss you and Joey. I miss the life that we had. I'm sorry it took all the pain that I caused you and Joey and me to realize that you're what I needed and wanted all along," he finished. She felt him relax after he'd said it.  
  
"So, is that what you were out running for?" Kim asked him.  
  
Jimmy nodded his head, "That's some of it."  
  
"I'll be right back with your medicine and tea," she said, sliding her hands free of his and heading toward the kitchen. She looked back at him from the doorway to the kitchen and saw that he was fast asleep. She watched him sleep for a moment and then went to make his tea. She couldn't let him sit there in wet clothes all night. She'd let him sleep while she made his tea and got him some dry clothes. She'd wake him up to take his medicine and put him to bed.  
  
One thing was for sure - there were still plenty of things to talk about. But, she knew in her heart what she wanted. The question was, could it work? 


	35. Chapter 35

Chapter 35-  
  
"You're quiet." Bobby observed as they ate dinner after Kim's shift was over that Friday.  
  
"Huh?" Kim looked up.  
  
"I said you're quiet."  
  
"Oh. Sorry."  
  
"Hey don't apologize. Usually after a day like today I can't shut you up. I like the change of pace."  
  
"Uh-huh." Kim said staring at the glass in front of her.  
  
Bobby rose an eyebrow. "Kim, you keep this up and someone's gonna do an autopsy on you." He reached over and took her hand. "What's up?"  
  
Kim shook her head. "Nothing."  
  
"Hey, it's me. Talk to me."  
  
"I don't think I should. At least not about this."  
  
"This is about Jimmy then?" Bobby let go of her hand.  
  
"Yeah." Kim said quietly. "I've been thinking about something a lot lately."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Where I'd be if I hadn't split. I knew Jimmy would've been there if I'd told him. But I honestly thought that he deserved a real shot with Brooke. That's who he wanted, right?"  
  
"Kim."  
  
"I kept telling myself that he was just scared to make a commitment to Brooke. But I think it was me. I think I was the one who was scared. I was scared to get hurt again. I didn't want to give him that power over me again."  
  
"For what it's worth, I don't think he's the same guy anymore Kim. I think if you give him a shot, it'll be okay."  
  
"I can't believe you're saying that." Kim looked at him. "I told him the other night that you'd asked me to marry you twice."  
  
"And you shot me down both times." Bobby smiled. "Having second thoughts?"  
  
Kim laughed a little. "No. Love you to death but you deserve your own kids. You deserve someone who can give you your own kids."  
  
"Did you tell Jimmy?"  
  
Kim shook her head. "No."  
  
"You should."  
  
"I know." She shot a look at her watch. "I should also get home. It's my turn to pay right?"  
  
"I asked you. It's on me."  
  
"Bobby."  
  
"Go on. Get outta here. I'll see you tomorrow at the game."  
  
"Night."  
  
~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~  
  
"Mel, c'mon. What's the big deal?" Jimmy asked over the phone. He didn't know how much time he had so begging Melanie couldn't take too long.  
  
"The big deal is that last time I did you a 'favor' Kim didn't speak to me for two years."  
  
Jimmy rolled his eyes. "Ha-ha. You are so amusing."  
  
"Thanks. I think so too. Look you wanna know something about Kim, then I suggest you ask Kim. Night Jimmy."  
  
"Mel-" He stopped when he heard a dial tone. "Great." He hung up the phone and went over to the couch. He laid down and closed his eyes. He was asleep a little while later and didn't hear the door open when Kim came home.  
  
Kim locked the door behind her and put her purse down. She let her hair down and went around to the front of the couch. She was about to sit down when she noticed Jimmy. She smiled and took a blanket before she covered him. She kissed his forehead. "G'night." She whispered before she went to her own room, shutting the lights off as she went. 


	36. Chapter 36

Chapter 36  
  
Jimmy drove into the hospital with Kim for his doctor's appointment.  
  
"So, are you nervous?" asked Kim as she glanced over at Jimmy who was staring out the front of the car at nothing in particular.  
  
"Nah. I think I'm doing okay. He'll probably release me to go back to work," he said with a hint of sadness in his voice. He didn't want to go back to work yet. He didn't want to leave his family again. He'd thought about getting a job with the department here in Chicago. He'd even gone to the station near Kim's to check it out. He met some great guys and they told him about the job there in Chicago and who to talk to about trying to get on the department. But, it wasn't New York City and he loved his job there. He loved the guys there. And then his eyes grew dark as he thought to himself, "And Bobby's not there."  
  
"Well, it'll probably be good to get back to work, right?" Kim asked him. "You know, back into a routine. I know its been driving you crazy hearing the trucks go by the house and not being on one of them," she said.  
  
"What? What do you mean 'you know it's driving me crazy?'" Jimmy asked her, with slight irritation in his voice. He wasn't irritated at her; he was irritated at the situation.  
  
"Because I know you Jimmy. I see it in your eyes. You're a firefighter and you'll always be a firefighter," she said, with some admiration in her voice.  
  
Jimmy just nodded as he looked out his side window as they pulled into the parking lot of the hospital.  
  
"Okay, so you now where the office is, right?" Kim asked as they walked into the hospital.  
  
"Yeah. I'll be fine, Mommy," he said jokingly.  
  
She punched him lightly in the arm. "Okay, I'm going to go to work. Can you bring Charlie up to the daycare on your way?"  
  
"Sure," he said. "C'mere, munchkin," he said, taking his daughter into his arms. Charlie snuggled her head just under Jimmy's chin, alongside his neck and Jimmy got a peaceful feeling from it. He loved the smell of this baby - his baby.  
  
"What?" Kim said, as she noticed that Jimmy was staring at her.  
  
"Nothing," he said, leaning over to kiss her. The kiss lasted a little longer than she'd thought it would and she was slightly flustered by it. "Just thanks," he finished.  
  
"For what?" Kim asked him.  
  
"For taking care of me. For Joey and for Charlie," he said. "Now get to work," he said as he turned to bring Charlie to daycare and head upstairs for his appointment.  
  
"Don't forget to tell the doctor about the headaches," she called after him. He waved his hand in the air without turning around to acknowledge her comment.  
  
Kim watched him walk away.  
  
"Cute," came a voice from behind her. She turned to find her friend April standing behind her. "You left that behind in New York?" she asked Kim with an "I can't believe you left him," look on her face.  
  
"It's complicated," Kim replied simply and headed off to work. 


	37. Chapter 37

Chapter 37~  
  
Kim came through the front door at about quarter after seven that night. She smelled burgers.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hey Mom." Joey came in. "Dad's barbecuing."  
  
"I can smell it. It smells great Jimmy." Kim said the last part a little more loudly.  
  
"Thanks." He said. "Oh hey, Melanie called. She wanted you to call her back."  
  
"Okay. I'll call her after dinner. Can I help?"  
  
"No. It's under control."  
  
"How was your appointment?"  
  
"I'm okay to go back to work."  
  
"What did the doctor say about the headaches?" Kim asked  
  
"Well they did a CT and a MRI and everything's still in there."  
  
"Ha-ha." Kim rolled her eyes. "Jimmy?"  
  
"He said that it's probably just stress. I just have to stay calm."  
  
"Okay. I think we can do that." Kim said. "Did Mel say what she wanted?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Okay. You know I'll just find out when I call. Joey, did you finish your homework?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"Even your reading?" Kim looked at Jimmy.  
  
"He's all done Kim. Promise. I stayed with him while he did it."  
  
"Okay then. Joey'll set the table. I'll go get Charlie."  
  
"Okay." Jimmy nodded and then went back to check on dinner.  
  
()&()&()&()&()  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hi Mel. You rang?" Kim asked as she sat down on her bed that night after changing into her pajamas.  
  
"Just wanted to see what was going on in my sister's life."  
  
"Nothing earth shattering."  
  
"Hey have you and Jimmy talked lately?"  
  
"Talked? Define please." Kim said as she reclined on her bed.  
  
"Well he called the other day because you apparently said something that got him thinking and he wanted to know if I knew anything. Something about him having a short memory."  
  
"Oh, that."  
  
"Yeah. So what happened?"  
  
"We had a fight and I said something I shouldn't have but I didn't elaborate so he's probably just wondering what's up."  
  
"If you ask me-"  
  
"Don't believe I did." Kim interrupted.  
  
"Anyway, I think you should tell him."  
  
"I know I should. I'm just not sure how to approach it."  
  
"Truth usually works the best Kimmy." Melanie said.  
  
"What are you eating?"  
  
"Ice cream, why?"  
  
"Just wondering. You always get insightful when you eat. It's creepy."  
  
"Thanks Kim. See ya later."  
  
"Bye." Kim hung up the phone and sighed. She knew Melanie was right. She did have to come clean with Jimmy. He might want to have more kids and she couldn't give them to him. She slowly got out of bed and went over to her closet door. She opened it up and then lifted up the baseball jersey she was wearing. She lightly traced the scar that ran across her abdomen. She closed her eyes for a minute and then opened them back up. She dropped the shirt and went to close the door when she caught sight of Jimmy in the mirror. He was framed in the doorway to her bedroom. She hadn't even heard her door open. She closed the door and turned around.  
  
"Jimmy, how long-"  
  
"Long enough. Kimmy, what happened?" 


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter 38  
  
Jimmy came downstairs from putting Joey to bed. Charlie had gone down hopefully for the night about an hour before. Kim was in the kitchen finishing up with the dinner dishes. He walked into the kitchen and inhaled the aroma of fresh-brewed coffee. "Kids asleep?" she asked, feeling his presence behind her.  
  
"Yup, out like lights," he said. "Mmmmm," he said, walking up behind Kim. "Smells great."  
  
"It's just about done. I'll pour you some," she said, liking the closeness of Jimmy to her.  
  
"Thanks," he said as he took in the fragrance of her hair. "I always did like the smell of your shampoo," he said, stepping a little closer. He put a hand on her shoulder and twirled a few stands of her hair between his fingers, bringing it up to his nose to take another breath of the fragrance.  
  
"I know you did," she said, letting her hands, holding the sponge and dirty dish she was cleaning, hang down into the warm water. She leaned back against him and felt the muscles in his torso against her back. She closed her eyes briefly, remembering the feel of him next to her. Jimmy bent his head down and began nuzzling her neck and she snuggled in closer to him, letting out a soft moan at the feel of his lips on her neck. He turned her toward him and put a hand along her jaw, cupping her chin and bringing her mouth to his. She dropped the sponge and dish into the sink and turned into him, deepening the kiss.  
  
After a moment, she found her senses and pulled away slightly. "Jimmy," she said, not wanting to stop. "We should really talk," she said, remembering that Jimmy had seen the scar and wanted answers to his questions. She'd told him that they would have a long talk after the kids were in bed. She needed to know what he wanted and what he didn't want. She needed to know what was in her future. She knew what she wanted it to be and hoped with all her heart that it was what he wanted to.  
  
Jimmy let out a sigh, "Yeah, okay," he said in almost a whisper as he stepped back from her.  
  
The buzzer on the oven went off and Kim welcomed the interruption. She tossed him the oven mitts and said, "Why don't you grab those cinnamon rolls out of the oven while I pour some coffee for us."  
  
"Cinnamon rolls. My favorite," he said, licking his lips in anticipation. "The kind with the icing?" he said like a little boy.  
  
"Is there any other kind?" she said teasingly.  
  
Jimmy turned off the oven and put the hot pan on the top of the stove. He watched as Kim poured the icing over the hot rolls and it melted and ran across the tops and down the sides of the rolls. He felt his mouth watering. He looked up at Kim and saw her smiling at him. "What?" he said, embarrassed.  
  
"You're worse than Joey," she said smugly, letting out a low chuckle.  
  
They took the rolls and their coffee into the living room where it was more comfortable. The sat for a few minutes, each awkwardly sipping their coffee and eating a roll, licking the icing from their fingers.  
  
"So," said Kim finally. "Dr. Nelson cleared you for work, huh? When?" she asked, wanting to hear him say that he wasn't going anywhere. But she couldn't force him to stay. It wouldn't work that way.  
  
"I don't know. He said he'd give me another week or so for the headaches if I wanted," he told her. "What do you think I should do?"  
  
"Jimmy. That's not for me to say. You have to figure out what's best for you. I do know that you love what you do and you're good at it," she said, looking at him.  
  
"I do love what I do. But, I love my family also. I can't stand to leave Joey again and Charlie. My God, Charlie. She's beautiful. I love her so much," he said, tears stinging his eyes.  
  
"Jimmy," Kim said only to be interrupted by Jimmy.  
  
"Kim, what happened? What's the scar from?" he asked her, looking her directly in the eye. He wasn't going to let her skirt the issue any more.  
  
"Jimmy. I had some complications when I had Charlie and ended up having to have a c-section," she started to explain. Tears sprang to her eyes when she thought of never being able to have another child. She didn't even know if she wanted anymore, but the thought of not being able to even if she wanted to hurt her deeply. A tear fell down her cheek and Jimmy was next to her in an instant.  
  
"Kim," he said, wiping the tear away. "Tell me what's wrong?"  
  
"Jimmy. Remember when I was pregnant with Joey and the hard labor I had with him?" she asked. Jimmy nodded his head yes, but he looked confused as he tried to understand what this had to do with Charlie.  
  
"Well," she continued. "I never told you, but Dr. Williams told me that I shouldn't try to have any more kids. He told me that I could have major complications and even die if I did."  
  
"Is that why you had to have Charlie by c-section?" Jimmy asked her.  
  
"Yeah. I was coming home from work the afternoon she was born and I wasn't feeling well. I probably shouldn't have stayed at work as long as I did," she said, thinking back to that day. Jimmy nodded, encouraging her to continue.  
  
"Well, the last thing I remember from that day is walking down the street from my job at the market where I worked while I was finishing nursing school. The next thing I remember is the next day when I woke up and Bobby was standing next to my hospital bed with Joey in his arms," she said, fresh tears starting to fall. Jimmy tightened at the mention of Bobby's name, but held back to let her finish telling him everything.  
  
"I saw that I wasn't pregnant anymore and felt the pain from the surgery. I thought the worst. Turns out that I began bleeding and was unconscious. Bobby found me in the hospital and called Melanie and my Mom and they came out right away," she said. Jimmy mentally counted back from Charlie's age and concluded that was the time that Melanie had told him she was going away with friends from work. "Damn her for knowing and not telling me. What if Kim had died? He should have been here. For Joey at least," he thought to himself, anger rising within him.  
  
"Anyway, I was in pretty rough shape. They told Mom that I might not make it, even if they did take the baby. She had to make a decision and they ended up doing the c-section and taking Charlie. But, there was a lot of bleeding that they couldn't stop it. They ended up having to do a hysterectomy," she said openly crying now. "Jimmy, I'll never be able to have any more children. Joey and Charlie are all I have," she said through her sobs.  
  
Jimmy's heart broke at the pain she was in and he was torn between the anger of not being told and the emotional pain that Kim was in. He moved closer to her and placed a hand across her stomach. "Kim. I'm so sorry. I wish that you'd told me. Kim, I would have been here for you. I want to be here for you. For Joey and Charlie. Always," he said wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close.  
  
Just then the doorbell rang. Jimmy unwrapped his arms and got up to answer the door.  
  
"What do you want?" Jimmy said angrily as Bobby stood in the doorway. 


	39. Chapter 39

Ch 39~  
  
Kim looked up the minute she heard the anger in Jimmy's voice. She saw Bobby at the door and sighed. "Hi Bobby." She said quietly. "Jimmy, can you let him in?"  
  
"Kim-"  
  
"We'll talk in a little while." She promised.  
  
"Fine." Jimmy let Bobby in.  
  
Bobby looked at Jimmy and then at Kim. "Did I interrupt something?"  
  
"Yeah kinda." Kim said quietly at the same time Jimmy said,  
  
"Yes," in an adamant tone.  
  
"Oh. Maybe I should go."  
  
"Maybe you should."  
  
"Jimmy."  
  
"Kim, he wants to go."  
  
"Bobby, you can stay if you want."  
  
"No, I'll go. I obviously interrupted something important." Bobby went back out the door.  
  
Kim looked at Jimmy. "You have got to stop that."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Bobby is my friend. There's nothing but that between us."  
  
"Not always Kim."  
  
"Oh God. Do you know how long ago that was?"  
  
"He asked you to marry him."  
  
"Even if he is in love with me which after all this time, I really doubt, I'm not in love with him. He's my best friend and he's my family. Period. You are going to have to learn to co-exist with him. Jimmy, I am asking you. Please, don't make more to this situation then there is."  
  
"Kim-" The ringing of the phone cut him off.  
  
Kim picked up the phone. "Hello?..Mom?. Mom, slow down..What?...Oh God. Is she okay?..Yeah, yeah. We'll be there soon." She hung up. "Son of a bitch." She swore.  
  
"Kim?"  
  
"Melanie's in the hospital."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"Tony went ballistic and went after her."  
  
"What about Abby?"  
  
"She's fine. She was at Mom's. Doc and Carlos are the ones who picked Mel up after a neighbor called. Doc recognized her and called my mom." Kim looked mad and scared. "I have to be there."  
  
"Of course."  
  
"I wanna take Joey and Charlie with me. I want you to come too." She hesitated at the last part. "Mel adores Bobby and he adores her. I want him to come along too."  
  
"Okay." Jimmy said after a moment.  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yeah. C'mon let's go." 


	40. Chapter 40

Chapter 40  
  
They had managed to get a flight out the next morning. Kim had called Joey's school and told them that there was a family emergency in New York and that Joey would be out of school for a while. Then, she had called work to let them know the same. She was finishing up the packing while Jimmy went over to pick up Bobby. "I hope they don't get into it," she thought to herself as she zipped up the last bag. She went downstairs to feed the kids before they had to leave for the airport.  
  
~~~~  
  
Bobby answered the knock on his door and opened it to find Jimmy standing there. "You ready to go?" Jimmy asked him with slight irritation in his voice.  
  
"Uh, yeah. I, uh, wasn't expecting you," Bobby said as he turned to take a last look around to make sure everything was turned off. He grabbed his bag that he'd set beside his door and locked the door as he closed it behind him.  
  
"Yeah, I'll bet," Jimmy mumbled under his breath. "Kim's finishing up packing stuff for the kids. I swear, she's packing like we're going to be gone for months," Jimmy complained.  
  
"Yeah, well. Kimmy always was the one to take the Boy Scout motto to heart - always be prepared," joked Bobby and the two men chuckled at Kim's expense.  
  
They were sitting at a traffic light just down the road from Kim's house. Jimmy glanced at his watch and softly cursed. "We're gonna be late for the flight," he said, frustrated.  
  
Bobby looked at his watch. "I know a quick check through spot at the airport. No one knows about it," he said with a smile. "I took one of the supervisors out of there with a heart attack one day. His parting words for me as I left him at the ER," Bobby explained.  
  
"Paramedic perks," Jimmy said, trying to joke.  
  
There was an awkward silence as the light changed and traffic started moving. "So, any more news about Melanie?" Bobby asked, trying to break the silence and tension.  
  
"Kim talked to Catherine this morning. She's pretty messed up. We're not sure about the extent of the injuries," Jimmy reported.  
  
They pulled into the driveway and went into the house to start moving the bags out to the car. Kim was rushing around making sure everything was locked, turned off, turned down, or whatever needed to be done. She grabbed a stack of bills off the desk. She'd have to write out bills and mail them from New York if she wanted the heat and lights to be on when they got back. Joey was keeping Charlie amused in the living room while everyone got everything settled into the car.  
  
Kim and Bobby climbed into the car and Jimmy went back in to grab the kids and lock the door after one final look-around. "So, how was the ride over?" asked Kim, hoping to avoid any more drama for a while.  
  
"It was okay," Bobby said, reassuring her. "We didn't kill each other," he joked.  
  
"You know he doesn't hate you, don't you, Bobby?" Kim asked.  
  
"Well, I wouldn't go that far," Bobby said as he watched Jimmy, Joey and Charlie make their way to the car.  
  
"Bobby!" Kim said as she got out of the car to help Jimmy buckle Joey and Charlie in the back seat with Bobby.  
  
Jimmy started the car and slowly backed out of the driveway and headed for the airport. The tension was pretty thick in the car. After a few moments, Bobby poked Joey in the ribs and said, "Mom, Dad? Are we there yet? Is it much further? I have to go to the bathroom."  
  
Everyone in the car started to laugh and the tension seemed to be broken for the remainder of the trip.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Five hours later they found themselves at Mercy Hospital. Kim and Catherine were in with Melanie who was sleeping. Kim couldn't believe the amount of bruising to her face and arms. She grabbed the chart off the end of the bed and started looking through it. She grew angrier at every word. She had undergone a splenectomy and had a laceration to her liver. She roughly put the chart back in its holder and turned and walked out of the room.  
  
She came out of Melanie's room with a look that Jimmy and Bobby had seen before and both of them said, "Uh oh," at the same time.  
  
"Jimmy, did you get hold of Bosco yet?" she asked him. She found out from Doc that he and Faith had been the officers responding to the call.  
  
"I left a voice mail message on his phone. He hasn't called back yet," Jimmy told her.  
  
"Try him again. And then try Faith," she said, pacing angrily back and forth.  
  
"So, how is she?" Bobby asked Kim.  
  
"Not good. That bastard ruptured her spleen and lacerated her liver. What the hell did he do - throw her down a flight of stairs and run her over with a car?!" she practically screamed.  
  
"Kim, you need to calm down," said Jimmy as he finished leaving a message at Faith's apartment that they were at the hospital with Melanie.  
  
"Is she awake?" asked Bobby.  
  
"She's in and out. Go in and see her Bobby. She'll be glad you're here," Kim told him, putting a hand on his arm as he walked by.  
  
"I better go call and check on the kids," Kim said to Jimmy. She had phoned the old babysitter from her apartment building and was lucky enough to find her home. She agreed to take care of Joey and Charlie for her. The kids were exhausted and out of sorts from the trip and would have been miserable at the hospital with nothing to do. Luckily, some of Joey's friends from his old school that lived in the building were home and he was having a blast seeing them again.  
  
"Here, Kim. Use the cell phone," Jimmy said, holding the phone out to her.  
  
"No, I don't want it busy if Bosco or Faith calls back," she said as she left to find a payphone.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Bobby came out of Melanie's room and had the same angry look on his face that Kim had. "Bobby, you okay, Man?" asked Jimmy walking over to him. Bobby punched the wall in anger.  
  
"Who is this animal that Mel was with?" Bobby asked Jimmy.  
  
"His name is Tony. He's a cop," Jimmy explained to him.  
  
"And he's not in custody?!" Bobby asked in disbelief.  
  
"They haven't found him yet," Jimmy said. That was the information that they'd gotten from Catherine upon their arrival.  
  
"Bobby! Jimmy! Great to see you guys," came Faith's voice from behind them. They turned to see Bosco and Faith standing there in uniform and suddenly realized that they were working. They couldn't believe that they hadn't tried the 5-5 when they were looking for them.  
  
"What? You guys change your days off?" asked Jimmy as he reached out to shake Bosco's hand. Faith gave Bobby a hug.  
  
"Yeah, but it's great to see you again. Sorry it's under these circumstances," said Faith as Kim came around the corner.  
  
"Hey! I can't believe I never thought to check work for you guys," Kim said, walking over and hugging Bosco and Faith. She received a courteous but cool reception from Bosco and Faith. They only knew that she took off without telling Jimmy or anyone where she was going and she'd taken Jimmy's son with her. They were there for Jimmy during all that time, watching what it was doing to him. Faith tried to keep an open mind since she didn't know the whole story, but it was hard not to take Jimmy's side.  
  
After an awkward moment, Faith asked, "So, how's your sister doing? She was a mess when we found her."  
  
"Well, the doctor said she's going to recover, but it's going to take a while. He did a real number on her. Why isn't he in jail yet?" Kim asked, irritation evident in her voice.  
  
"We haven't found him yet, Kim," Bosco answered her. "But we're still looking. Don't think that just because Tony's a cop he's gonna get away with this," he reinforced.  
  
"Did you look at Brooke's house?" Kim asked and suddenly felt Jimmy's and Bobby's eyes on her.  
  
"Brooke? As in my ex-wife, Brooke?" Jimmy asked.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Bobby asked in surprise.  
  
"Tony was stepping out on Melanie," Kim said matter-of-factly. "Had been since before the baby was born - with Brooke. Mel didn't plan on getting pregnant, but thought that maybe it would help ground Tony a little bit. When it didn't, she didn't push him. But, he wouldn't just make a clean break with her. He kept coming back and messing up her mind," Kim explained.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me?" Jimmy asked. "I would have looked out for her better," he continued.  
  
"I thought you knew. After all, you know Brooke. I assumed you kept in touch," Kim said.  
  
"No. We never talked after she left," Jimmy said quietly.  
  
"So, where's Brooke live?" Bosco asked. 


	41. Chapter 41

Ch 41-  
  
"You sure you don't wanna go to your mom's? Or even Mel's?" Jimmy asked.  
  
"No. Mel's is probably taped off and I don't think I could sleep even if I wanted to." Kim tried to smile. "But you go on. Go pick up Joey and Charlie and take them to my mom's. Bobby went to his mom's to get some sleep. He said he'd be back around nine or so. I think you could use the sleep."  
  
"So could you." Jimmy pointed out.  
  
Kim nodded. "Probably but I don't think I'd be able to."  
  
"I could stay. One phone call and my mom will pick them up and take them back to her place for the night."  
  
"Your mom? Yeah, have you told her about Charlie yet?"  
  
"I wanted to do it face to face but desperate times call for desperate measures."  
  
"Jimmy, go get our kids and take them to my mom's. Please. I'll feel better knowing they're with you and I'm pretty sure Charlie would like seeing a familiar face right about now."  
  
"Okay but promise me you will come home for some sleep. Please?"  
  
"I'll come home when Bobby gets here. I don't want her and my mom to be alone."  
  
Jimmy pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Call me if you wanna talk. Or even if you don't."  
  
"I will. Kiss the kids for me."  
  
"Promise." Jimmy smiled before he left.  
  
Kim watched him go before she went back into Melanie's room. Catherine was in the chair by her bed. Kim took the chair on the opposite side and pulled it closer. She rested her arms on the railing of her sister's bed and her chin on her hands as she watched her sister sleep.  
  
~#~#~#~#~#~#~#~  
  
Jimmy's eyes opened when he heard the door to the bedroom he was in open. "Kim?"  
  
"Hey. I thought you'd be in my mom's room." She whispered.  
  
"Joey's in there. He was tired. So was Charlie. She's in there too sharing Abby's space."  
  
Kim nodded.  
  
"Any change?"  
  
"She was still asleep when I left. Any word?"  
  
"Bosco called. They checked the station, his place, and Brooke's. No luck."  
  
"Great." Kim said as she sat down and took her shoes off. Her watch went next along with her necklace. She put the watch and necklace on the nightstand while her shoes were stored under the bed. "Where's my bag?"  
  
"On the floor next to the dresser."  
  
"Thanks." Kim knelt down and opened it. She pulled out a pair of boxer shorts. She kept her T-shirt on, since it was long and traded her jeans for the shorts.  
  
Jimmy smiled almost unconsciously. She hadn't even hesitated in changing in front of him. That was a good sign to him.  
  
"What?"  
  
Jimmy looked up. "What?"  
  
"You were smiling."  
  
"I was?"  
  
"Yeah. So what's up?"  
  
"Just thinking. How are you?" He sat up.  
  
"Scared. Mad. A little relieved."  
  
"Relieved?"  
  
"Yeah. I'm so glad Mom had Abby. I don't even want to think what would have happened if she hadn't." She said as she took a spot on the other bed. She looked over at him.  
  
"You're staring."  
  
"I know. I guess I'm just counting my blessings."  
  
"About what?"  
  
"You and I never had the easiest time together but I always knew that no matter what, no matter how bad things got between us you would never raise a hand to me or to Joey."  
  
"Guess I'm just not wired that way."  
  
Kim nodded. "Yeah I know. After I had Charlie, whenever a woman would come into the E.R. and she'd been beaten I always prayed that Charlie would never find herself as a statistic. That she'd find a good man, like her dad, because Jimmy no matter how badly you screw things up that's what you are. You're a good man."  
  
"C'mere." Jimmy reached out a hand and pulled Kim to his bed. She sat beside him. "It's gonna be okay. Mel and Abby are gonna be okay."  
  
"Just keep telling me that will you?" She said softly.  
  
"As long as you need me to." He promised. 


	42. Chapter 42

Chapter 42  
  
Kim was sitting in the park reading a book. It was sunny and warm with a slight breeze. She looked over at Charlie who was playing on a blanket alongside her. She looked over at Joey. He was playing ball with Jimmy. She leaned her head back and let the sun warm her face. She hadn't been this happy in a long time..  
  
Slowly, Kim opened her eyes and found herself looking at a ceiling. She felt someone's arms around her and looked up to see Jimmy peacefully sleeping next to her. She remembered coming home from the hospital last night and changing her clothes. She was sitting on the bed talking to Jimmy - about anything and everything. She hadn't done that in forever. She watched Jimmy sleep and reveled in the warm, safe feeling she had. After a few moments, she heard Charlie and Abby cooing to each other over the baby monitor. A few moments went by and she thought to herself that the babies were probably getting hungry.  
  
"G'morning," Jimmy said quietly in her ear.  
  
"Good morning to you, too," she said back, looking up at him. God, he was still gorgeous when he woke up, with that sleepy-eyed look and tousled hair. "You should get up Zambrano. Right now," she said to herself, knowing that if she stayed there things would happen.  
  
"Sorry I fell asleep in here last night," she said apologetically. Jimmy shook his head no.  
  
"Don't be. Remember when we used to do this every Sunday. We'd just lay here in bed and watch the sun move across the wall," said Jimmy.  
  
"Yeah," Kim sighed. "That was my favorite day of the week," she said just as Charlie and Abby let out a cry.  
  
"And then there were kids," Jimmy sighed, chuckling.  
  
"Stay here," Kim said. "I'll get them. I missed snuggling with Charlie last night before she went to bed."  
  
She started to sit up and felt resistance from Jimmy who still had his arms wrapped around her. "Kim. I want this again," he said softly.  
  
"Jimmy, don't," she said, firmly sitting up and looking at him. "I'm just so confused. And now Melanie needs me. Please," she said standing up, as the cries from the babies grew louder over the monitor.  
  
"Kim," Jimmy started only to be interrupted by her.  
  
"Jimmy. We WILL talk about this, but later. Please," she said turning to go get the kids.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Faith and Bosco were working. It was a semi-quiet night so far. The kind of night that you just wait for it to hit the fan.  
  
"So, it was good to see Bobby, Jimmy and Kim," Faith said, trying to pass the time.  
  
"Yeah. But it's weird," Bosco replied back to her.  
  
"How so?" she asked him.  
  
"I don't know. I mean it was great to see Kim again, but it was really awkward. I mean, who do we show loyalty to?" Bosco said, slowing the car down as he noticed someone that matched the description of a home invasion from last night.  
  
"Well, they're both still our friends," Faith replied looking in the same direction as Bosco. "We don't know what the whole story is between Jimmy and Kim so we really can't choose sides," she finished.  
  
Bosco maneuvered the car into a u-turn and came to a stop at the curb outside of the bar the suspect had entered.  
  
"Yeah, I guess. But, how could she just take the kid and leave without telling him if he was okay for so long?" Bosco said, trying to rationalize Kim's actions to himself out loud.  
  
"55-David to Central. We're outside of the Neptune with a subject matching the description from the home invasion. Have 55-Charlie respond for back- up," Faith said over the radio. "You wanna go in first, or do you want me to?" she asked Bosco as they approached the entrance to the bar.  
  
"Oh, by all means, ladies first," Bosco said, bowing slightly and letting Faith enter first as he reached to his side and unfastened his holster, leaving his hand resting on the butt of his weapon.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Faith and Bosco had approached the subject in the bar and determined that he was not the subject they were looking for. They started out of the bar as they saw Sully and Davis come walking in.  
  
"Wasn't the guy," Bosco said as they met up at the doorway. The officers turned around and were about to walk out of the bar when Sully paused momentarily, causing Bosco to walk into the back of him.  
  
"Geez, Sullivan! What the hell?" Bosco barked.  
  
Sully looked at the reflection of the man in the mirror without turning back around and then continued on out the door. After they reached the sidewalk, Sully motioned the three officers to follow him to the corner, out of site of the bar.  
  
"What's up, Sul?" asked Ty as they all reached the corner.  
  
"We're still looking for Tony in regards to him beating up on Zambrano's sister, right?" Sully asked.  
  
"Yeah," answered Faith. "Do you see him somewhere?" she asked, trying to casually look around.  
  
"I think that's him inside the bar back there. In the left-hand corner, in the back," Sully said. "I'm pretty sure it's him," he finished. 


	43. Chapter 43

Chapter 43-  
  
"Nah. I appreciate the thought but Joey probably doesn't remember your mom and Charlie's never met her."  
  
"You sure?"  
  
"Yeah. Hey any luck convincing my mom to get some rest?"  
  
"She's not budging." Bobby sighed. "I always wondered where you got your brick head. Now I know."  
  
"Thanks Bobby." Kim muttered.  
  
"So how's it going over there?"  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"C'mon Kimmy. I've seen you and Jimmy go down this road before. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to recognize the signs."  
  
"What signs?" Kim tried to play dumb but Bobby wasn't having any.  
  
"Kim, you can't fool me. I know you too well for that."  
  
"Well," Kim quickly looked around her and then crouched down behind the counter, "I'm pretty sure I'm still in love with him. How's that?"  
  
"A blind and deaf man could have figured that one out."  
  
"Thank you Bobby."  
  
"Any time. What are you gonna do about it?"  
  
"I don't know."  
  
"Not the answer I was looking for but we can work on it. What do you wanna do about it?"  
  
"Jump his bones."  
  
"Oh, thank you very much. I really needed that image."  
  
Kim giggled. "Sorry." She sighed. "Is there any change with Mel?"  
  
"Nah. The doctors say that that's a good thing. She's not getting any worse. Bosco called?"  
  
"No not yet. Look I'll be down there in about an hour okay? Then you can go get some sleep."  
  
"I have a better idea. I'll trade with Jimmy. He can stay here with you and Mel. I'll stay with the kids."  
  
"You sure?"  
  
"Yeah. I hate to sound like a guy but I'd feel better if a guy was here with you, your mom, and Mel."  
  
"All is forgiven for sounding like a guy. I'll talk to Jimmy. See you later." Kim got up and hung up the phone. "Jimmy?" She called.  
  
"Right here." He said coming in from the living room. "Who was on the phone?"  
  
"Bobby. His mom offered to watch the kids tonight."  
  
"That was nice of her."  
  
"She's watched Abby a couple of times. I turned him down. He offered an alternate suggestion. Do you wanna come to the hospital with me for the night? Mom refuses to leave so he said he'd watch them if you came with me."  
  
"Yeah." Jimmy nodded, glad she'd asked. "When do you wanna leave?"  
  
"I'm gonna go in half hour. Can you wait here till Bobby gets here and then meet me at the hospital?"  
  
"Sounds good. I'm gonna go get some jeans on."  
  
"Okay." Kim nodded. "Jimmy?"  
  
"Yeah?" He stopped at the doorway.  
  
"Thank you. You don't have to do this and you're doing it anyway."  
  
"She's Charlie's godmother and she's Joey's aunt. That makes her my family."  
  
Kim nodded.  
  
"Be ready in a minute."  
  
"Okay."  
  
hr  
  
"What's Bosco doing here?" Kim asked herself as she walked onto the ICU floor. "Bobby?"  
  
He turned around. "Hey Kim. I tried to get you before you left but Jimmy said you left already. He's on his way and he's bringing Joey, Charlie, and Abby with him."  
  
"What happened?" She peered over his shoulder. "Is Mel okay?"  
  
"She's fine for now."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Bos?"  
  
Kim looked at the police officer Bobby had deferred to. "Bosco?" She asked.  
  
"We had him."  
  
"Tony? Good. Wait. IHad/I him?"  
  
"Yeah. We took him down and processed him. Then he got arraigned."  
  
"And bailed out." Kim finished. "Who bailed him out?"  
  
"Well, it was-"  
  
"Brooke." Kim said. "Does she even know why you arrested him? Did anyone bother telling the woman what her partner did?"  
  
"I don't know what she knows."  
  
"Can we get a restraining order at least?" Kim asked. "I want to be able to have him arrested if he steps foot near Mel or Abby."  
  
"Speaking of where is she?" Faith asked.  
  
"Jimmy's got her. He's bringing her, Joey, and Charlie in." Bobby said.  
  
"Why?" Kim asked.  
  
"We think it'd be better if Abby was in a safe house or at least under police protection." Faith explained.  
  
"Fine but she has to stay with family. Mom?" Kim looked to her mother.  
  
Catherine nodded. "I'll go with Abby but you have to promise to get word to me if anything happens to Melanie."  
  
"I will I promise."  
  
"Kim."  
  
Jimmy was walking up when she turned around. She took pity on him and took Abby from him. She gave the little girl a hug and whispered, "You be good for Grandma," before handing her to Catherine. "Be careful, okay Mom?"  
  
"I will."  
  
"Mrs. Zambrano." Bosco led her out with Faith behind them.  
  
"Kim, what happened?"  
  
"Bobby, would you take Charlie and Joey home? Have they eaten?"  
  
"No not yet." Jimmy gave Charlie to Bobby. Joey was carrying the bag with her stuff in it.  
  
"Okay. Feed them and I'll see you later okay. Be good okay Joey?"  
  
"Okay Mom. Tell Aunt Mel I hope she feels better."  
  
"I will. Bobby?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Take 'em to your mom's house. He won't know to look there."  
  
"Yeah you got it." Bobby left with Charlie and Joey.  
  
Kim turned back to Jimmy.  
  
"Kim, what happened?"  
  
"The police had him and now he's out on bail."  
  
"Courtesy of Brooke?"  
  
"Yeah. Bosco and Faith want Abby under police protection and obviously they want the same for Mel." She nodded to the uniform outside of Mel's door. "I hope you don't mind Bobby taking the kids to his mom's."  
  
"No. You're right they'll be safer there."  
  
Kim sighed. "It's going to be a long night." 


	44. Chapter 44

Chapter 44  
  
Bobby left with Charlie and Joey. He had called his mother and she said she would make up the guest room for the kids, but that Bobby would have to resign himself to the couch.  
  
Kim and Jimmy were sitting beside Melanie's bed while the police officer stood guard outside her room. "I just can't believe this happening," Kim whispered to Jimmy.  
  
"I know. I feel helpless. Maybe I should go over to Brooke's place and see if she even knows what this jerk has done," he suggested to Kim who immediately gave him a "don't you dare" look.  
  
"No way, Jimmy. You're not going anywhere near that psycho. I'm sure she knows what he did, she had to go and bail him out so how would she not know the charges?" Kim said.  
  
Jimmy was about to say something more when Kim's cell phone started to ring. They both jumped at the sudden, unexpected sound and Kim got up and walked out into the hallway so that she didn't disturb her sister.  
  
"Hello," Kim said into the phone. "Oh, hi Bobby. Kids getting settled in? Make sure you tell your Mom how much I appreciate everything."  
  
"It's no problem. The kids are having fun being spoiled by my Mom and she doesn't mind a bit. Although, you know, she's gonna start ragging on me about giving her some grandkids of her own," Bobby said to her.  
  
"Yeah, well you better get busy on that," Kim replied.  
  
"Yeah, 'cause everyone I meet everyday is so healthy, right?" He teased. "Anyway, what I called you for is, I need to know what kind of diapers you use for Charlie. There isn't any in the bag Jimmy brought with him and her bunny isn't in the bag either," Bobby said, knowing that Charlie had had her bunny since the day she was born. She couldn't go to sleep without it.  
  
"Oh, dammit. I'm sorry, Bobby. Hang on and I'll ask Jimmy if he left it in his car," Kim said as she peeked around the doorway and summoned Jimmy to the hallway. She told him what Bobby needed.  
  
"Damn! I left them on the shelf by the front door. I grabbed bunny and a supply of diapers and wipes, but I set them down when the phone rang on my way out. They're sitting right there. Tell him to sit tight and I'll go grab them and bring them over. I better pack some more baby food to," Jimmy said as he grabbed his jacket and gave Kim a kiss. "I'll be right back," he whispered as Kim was relaying the information to Bobby.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Brooke and Tony were sitting in her living room. She had been trying to find out exactly what happened. She knew there was no love lost between Melanie and Tony, but he was a cop and she wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt.  
  
"Look! I already told you. Melanie was fine when I left. I didn't do anything to her," he said angrily.  
  
"Tony. I want to believe you, but Melanie told the cops on the scene that you were the one that attacked her. Now, please, let me help you. But, you've gotta tell me the truth," she pleaded.  
  
Without any warning, he swung and connected solidly on the side of Brooke's face, knocking her off the couch and onto the ground.  
  
"All you bitches are all alike! Why can't you all just leave me alone," he screamed as he continued to hit her. She rolled herself into a ball to try to protect herself from his blows. She was hoping he would just get tired and leave, but he showed no signs of that.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy drove to Catherine's house and went inside to grab the diapers, bunny and some more baby food. The phone rang while he was there and he thought it might be Kim or Bobby thinking of something else he'd forgotten.  
  
"What else did I forget," he said into the phone.  
  
"Who's this?" came the angry voice from the other end.  
  
"This is Jimmy. Who's this?" he asked, frowning.  
  
"Look, tell me where my kid is. I'm gonna pick her up while Melanie's in the hospital," the man on the other end of the phone ordered.  
  
"Tony? You gotta be kidding me. There's no way you're gonna get your hands on Abby. She's somewhere safe from you and you'd be better off just turning yourself in to the police," Jimmy warned him before hanging up.  
  
Jimmy looked around to make sure that he had everything he needed and pulled the door shut and locked it behind him.  
  
Jimmy didn't see the dark colored car that was sitting just down the block from Catherine's house, watching his every move. He didn't notice that the car seemed to pull out from the curb at the same time that he did. And, he didn't notice that it followed at a safe distance all the way to the Caffey household. 


	45. Chapter 45

Chapter 45-  
  
"Domestic disturbance?" Carlos asked Sully.  
  
"Yeah. Neighbors heard screaming and called 9-1-1. When we got here, we found her like this." Sully nodded to the woman on the floor. "Said she's a cop. Uh, Doc?"  
  
"Yeah?" The medic paused. His partner did the same. "What's up Sully?"  
  
"It's Brooke Carney."  
  
Doc looked at him quizzically for a second and then his face cleared. "Oh damn."  
  
"Wait. Jimmy's Brooke?" Carlos questioned. "Are you sure?"  
  
"Her face is pretty banged up but we found a picture and her ID on the table in the kitchen. Davis also asked. She confirmed it."  
  
"She say who did it?" Doc asked.  
  
Sully nodded. "Tony."  
  
Carlos shook his head. "Anyone tell Kim or Jimmy?"  
  
"Davis and I are gonna head to Mercy to do just that. We'll see you guys later. E.S.U. is on their way. A detective is probably gonna go with you to the hospital to get her statement." Sully said.  
  
"Thanks Sul." Doc said.  
  
"Yeah. Davis, let's go."  
  
The younger man nodded and followed his partner out the door while Doc and Carlos went to work on Brooke.  
  
(~(~(~(~(~(~(  
  
Kim was leaning on her elbow, her cheek resting on her palm as she half dozed in the chair beside Melanie's bed. Her sister had been awake for a little bit. They talked and then Mel fell back asleep. Now Kim was starting to doze off. She was startled out of her sleep when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up expecting Jimmy but it was Ty Davis.  
  
"Hey." She said quietly. "It's been a while."  
  
"Yeah. Can we talk?"  
  
"In the hall?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Sure." Kim got up quietly and followed him into the hallway. "Hi Sully. How are you?"  
  
"Good. You?"  
  
"I've had better weeks. I've had better root canals." She kidded.  
  
"Yeah, I can believe that." The gruff cop nodded.  
  
"What's going on?" Kim looked from Sully to Davis and then back.  
  
"We got a call tonight. It was a domestic disturbance."  
  
"Okay. Just tell me it wasn't Bobby's mother's cause that's where my kids are."  
  
"No. It was at Brooke's house."  
  
"Brooke."  
  
"Yeah. She got knocked around pretty badly." Davis said.  
  
"Tony?"  
  
"That's what she said. I asked the neighbor that called it in and she described Tony almost to the last detail."  
  
"Do we know where he is?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Can you put a cop over at Bobby's mother's house? My kids are there and I don't trust Tony not to find them. She's sat for Abby a few times."  
  
"I'll call it in." Sully said.  
  
"Thanks." Kim said and then rattled off the address. "This time, when you catch him, don't let him go."  
  
"You can count on it." Davis said.  
  
)*)*)*)*)*)*)  
  
A little while later Jimmy came back into Mel's room. Kim was sitting in a chair with her knees drawn up to her chest.  
  
"Hey." He said quietly.  
  
Kim looked up. "You're back."  
  
"Yeah. Everything okay?" He said looking down at her.  
  
"No." She looked at her sister. "Sully and Davis were here a little while ago."  
  
"Now what?"  
  
"Let's go in the hall." Kim took Jimmy's hand and led him into the hall and down to the waiting room. It was empty. They sat down on the couch.  
  
"Kim? What's wrong? Did something happen?" Jimmy asked.  
  
"Yeah. Jimmy, Brooke was brought in a little while ago. Tony beat her up." 


	46. Chapter 46

Chapter 46  
  
Jimmy and Kim had sat together for a short while. Jimmy had just gotten back from seeing how bad Brooke was and filled her in. Kim sensed that Jimmy wanted to tell her something else, but for some reason was hesitating. She feared that he was having feelings for Brooke again. She scolded herself inwardly for starting to let her feelings show to Jimmy.  
  
"What is it?" Kim asked him quietly, not looking him in the eye.  
  
"What's what?" asked Jimmy.  
  
"I know you want to tell me something. Jimmy, you could never hide anything from me," Kim said to him with a smirk.  
  
"Well, I ran into D.K. downstairs on my way up. I guess three of the guys got hurt at a job earlier and they were just leaving the hospital. Nothing serious, but they're short three guys and Doc can't spare Alex from the bus to fill in," he explained.  
  
"And?" Kim said.  
  
"Well, the Captain came over and asked me when I was coming back to work because he'd gotten the report from the doctor in Chicago saying I was okay," he paused, waiting for Kim to put it together.  
  
She was quiet for a moment and then said, "And you're going to finish out tonight's shift, right?"  
  
"If that's okay with you," he said, hoping to get her approval. He really did miss the job.  
  
"Go ahead, Jimmy," Kim said, relieved that's all it was and not him going back to Brooke.  
  
"Are you sure?" he said.  
  
"Yeah, there's nothing much to do here," she said. "I mean, Mel's asleep and there's a cop at the door. The kids are safe with Bobby and his Mom and it sounds like the Captain can use your help. That is, if you're sure you're feeling okay to go back," she finished, looking at him.  
  
"I feel great, Kim. You know where I'll be if you need me for anything. Why don't you head out? There's no sense sitting here all night while she's sleeping. You should get some rest too," he said, hoping she'd take his advice. She looked totally exhausted.  
  
"Nah. I made Mom go with Abby and promised her I'd stay with Mel. I'll just grab a blanket and catch some sleep here," she said, shrugging off his concern as unnecessary.  
  
"Okay," Jimmy said standing up. "I'll be by first thing in the morning to pick you up." He bent over and kissed her goodbye. "And, we still need to talk about things, Kimmy," he said as he turned to leave.  
  
She watched him round the corner and smiled to herself.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
The detectives were trying to determine if it was necessary to post an officer at the Caffey's house since Tony didn't know the Caffey's and had no idea where his mother lived.  
  
They decided to send the officer to cover Kim's mother's house because they had gotten a phone call from Jimmy Doherty telling him that he had called there demanding to see his daughter.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Jimmy had returned to Camelot to finish out the shift and it felt great to be back. They'd had a busy night so far with three jobs already since he'd been there. They were nothing big, but it felt good to get back into the swing of things again.  
  
The whole crew was sleeping up in the bunkroom when the lights flashed on and the sound of the dispatcher came over the overhead speakers.  
  
"Engine 57, Adam 55-3, respond with Engine 59 and Truck 59 to 4752 East Forrester Avenue for a residential fire."  
  
Everyone was already moving before the dispatcher was done with the information, but suddenly Jimmy stopped short as he ran toward the truck. "Hey, Cap! That's Bobby Caffey's mother's house!"  
  
"Yeah, well, PD is in the scene reporting heave smoke and fire showing, so let's get moving!" replied the Captain as everyone boarded the truck and it rolled out of the station.  
  
"My kids are there!" Jimmy said nervously as the driver heard him and pressed the accelerator down further.  
  
"We'll get them out," D.K. tried to reassure his friend. 


	47. Chapter 47

Chapter 47-  
  
Kim couldn't relax. There was something gnawing at her. Something inside her was telling her that something was wrong besides the obvious. She got up and left Melanie's room to wander down the hall. She checked her watch. Just after midnight. Jimmy would be here in eight hours. Way to long to be jumpy. She took out her cell phone.  
  
"This is stupid Kim." She told herself. I Good. That's out of the way. /I She dialed the firehouse. "C'mon, someone answer. Doc, Alex, Carlos, anyone is good." She whispered. She let it ring at least twelve times before she hung up. Then she tried Bobby's house. She knew her friend's mother was a light sleeper so she grew worried when no one answered after ten rings. She disconnected and then called the 5-5.  
  
"Fifty-fifth Precinct. Sgt. Marconi speaking."  
  
"Is Officer Boscorelli there?"  
  
"Sorry. Can I take a message?"  
  
"Yeah. Tell him Kim Zambrano called and that he has to call me back as soon as possible."  
  
"I will."  
  
"Thanks. Bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
Kim hung up and sighed. She did not have a good feeling about this.  
  
#)(#)(#)(#)(#)(#)(#)(#  
  
"D.K.! Walsh! Where the hell did Doherty go?"  
  
"Around back. Caffey's still not out."  
  
"What about the kids?"  
  
"Taylor and Doc have Joey. Carlos and Dan took the little girl."  
  
"Caffey's mother?"  
  
"Doc's checking her right now." Walsh said.  
  
Cap got on his walkie-talkie. "Doherty?"  
  
"I'm coming Cap. I found Bobby. He's okay but he's unconscious."  
  
"Copy that." He looked over. "Carlos! Dan! Over here now! Bring a back board."  
  
Carlos and Dan ran over to where Jimmy was carrying Bobby.  
  
"Easy Jimmy. Put him down gently. Kim will never forgive you if you break any of his bones." Carlos said.  
  
Jimmy carefully put Bobby down on the backboard. "He's breathing okay from what I could tell. How are my kids?"  
  
"Joey's more scared then hurt and Charlie's been screaming ever since Lombardo handed her to Carlos." Dan said. "Breath sounds are normal."  
  
"Pupils are equal and reactive. He's probably unconscious due to smoke inhalation. We're taking him to Mercy and getting him checked out. Doc's got your kids and Bobby's mom. He could probably use a hand." Carlos said. "Not to mention a driver."  
  
"Thanks man." Jimmy took off his smoky jacket and wiped his hands best he could. He walked over to the ambulance where Doc and Alex were. "Joey?"  
  
"Dad!" Joey leapt into his father's arms. "Are you okay?"  
  
"I'm fine champ." He pulled back. "You okay?" He scanned Joey's face for signs of trauma or injury.  
  
"I'm okay."  
  
"He's fine." Alex said. "Breathing's normal and no cough, right Joey?"  
  
"Right." Joey smiled.  
  
"And Charlie?" Jimmy looked to where Doc was holding the little girl.  
  
"She's okay Jimmy. Good set of lungs."  
  
"Gets those from her mother." Jimmy winced. "Damn. Kim. Can I use your cell phone?" He asked of Alex.  
  
"Sure." She dug it out and handed it over.  
  
Jimmy dialed Kim's number.  
  
*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*  
  
Kim jumped a mile when her phone rang. She answered it quietly.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Kim? It's me."  
  
"Jimmy, what's going on?"  
  
"I want you to stay calm because everything's okay. Everyone's okay."  
  
"Oh I don't like conversations that begin like that." Kim said.  
  
"There was a fire at Bobby's mother's house."  
  
"Oh God."  
  
"Hey. Stay with me here okay? Everyone's okay. The kids, Mrs. Caffey, everyone."  
  
"What about Bobby?"  
  
"He was unconscious. Carlos and Dan are bringing him in right now. I'm gonna bum a ride in the ambulance from Alex and Doc."  
  
"I'll meet you in the ER." Kim said.  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Jimmy?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I love you. I just thought you should know that. See you soon." Kim said before she hung up. 


	48. Chapter 48

Chapter 48  
  
Kim was waiting in the ER for Bobby, Jimmy, Joey, Charlie and Mrs. Caffey. She was pacing back and forth. "What's taking them so long?" she asked herself as her worry grew. Suddenly she had a terrible thought.  
  
She dug threw her purse for her cell phone and dialed Bosco's cell phone number. After three rings he finally answered.  
  
"Boscorelli! Just stay right there, Jag-off!" Bosco said into the phone, out of breath.  
  
"Bosco? It's me Kim. Can you talk for a second?" she asked him, realizing that he was still working and it sounded like he was in the middle of an arrest.  
  
"Kim. Yeah, because this jag-off's not goin' anywhere for a long time," he said into the phone, his voice growing louder as he went. "What's up?" he asked, returning his attention to Kim.  
  
"Bos. There was a fire at Bobby's Mom's house. Where the kids are," she continued.  
  
"Is everyone alright?" he asked suddenly concerned with what she was telling him.  
  
"Yeah, I think so. Bobby's unconscious, but they think it's just the smoke. Look, with all that's happened, I have a gut feeling that this fire wasn't just an accident," she said. "Do you know this cop that's supposed to be covering my mother's house? She's there with Abby. Does he know what he's doing?" she asked him.  
  
"Yeah, Thompson's a good cop, but- hang on a second," he said taking the phone away from his mouth. She could hear muffled talking in the background and made out Faith's voice as she said, "Absolutely."  
  
Bosco came back to the phone. "Look, Kim. Faith and I are off as soon as we turn this guy over to the lock-up. We're gonna go over and stay with your Mom and Abby until this guy's caught. Don't worry. I'll call Thompson right now and alert him until we get there," he finished.  
  
"Thanks, Bos. I just want to make sure that Bobby and Jimmy and the kids are okay and then I'll head over to Mom's also. Mel's got a guard outside her door, so she should be good for the night. I really owe you guys one," she said, hanging up the phone just as the ambulances pulled up with her family inside.  
  
Jimmy came in carrying Charlie and a tight hold on Joey's hand. Joey broke free and ran over to Kim as soon as he saw her. "Mom! It was terrible. I was so scared. Bobby lowered me out the window and then reached way out and handed Charlie to me. Is he gonna be okay, Mom? Is he? Dad went in and rescued Bobby. It was awesome," he said, out of breath and with a look of admiration on his face as he looked over at Jimmy.  
  
"Joey! I'm so glad you guys are okay. Daddy said that Bobby just took some smoke, so he'll be okay in a little while. Thanks for being so brave and getting Charlie away from the house until Daddy got there," Kim said, hugging Joey tight. She watched as Doc wheeled Bobby past and into the ER. Mrs. Caffey was walking quickly behind the gurney. All of them were covered in soot.  
  
Kim walked up to Jimmy and Charlie and hugged them both. "Jimmy. Thank God you were working tonight. It must have been an omen," she said as she hugged him tightly, getting her clothes covered in soot from his turnout gear.  
  
"Thank God Bobby was there," Jimmy said. "He saved them, Kim. That house was fully involved when we rolled up. I was so scared. I thought.." he said as his voice started to break and he turned away from his friends.  
  
"Jimmy, it's okay to be scared. We all are," Kim assured him. Kim then walked up to Mrs. Caffey who was watching the doctors and nurses take care of Bobby through the window. She put an arm around her shoulder and the woman sagged against her, tears falling. "Kim, I'm so sorry," she said.  
  
"Sorry? Sorry for what? I'm the one who's sorry. Your house was destroyed because of my sister's boyfriend. I'm so sorry," Kim said.  
  
"Kim, please go make sure my Bobby is okay. They won't let me in there, but you're a nurse and paramedic. They'll let you in, right?" Mrs. Caffey asked her.  
  
"I'll see what I can do," she said, turning to go into the ER treatment room. She walked in and Mary Proctor recognized her immediately.  
  
"Kim Zambrano! As I live and breathe. When did you blow back into town? We really missed you around here. And Jimmy did too. We treated him a few times and every time he called your name as he was waking up." Nurse Proctor said, pausing to give Kim a small hug. Kim blushed slightly, getting a warm feeling at the news that Jimmy had called out for her.  
  
"Mary. I missed all of you too. So, how's our hero?" Kim asked, noticing that Bobby was coming around. She walked over to him and took his hand as he came fully awake.  
  
"Well, he took some smoke and he's got a few minor burns. But, all in all, I'd say he's gonna be fine," she said, checking his vitals again. She checked over his IV and the heart monitor and oxygen and turned to leave to check on another patient. "Never a dull moment around this precinct," she said under her breath.  
  
Kim and Bobby laughed, which caused Bobby to start a coughing fit because of the smoke in his lungs. "Bobby, what can I say? Thank you for saving my children. I'm just so sorry about your Mom's house," she said, a few tears escaping down her cheeks. She leaned over and hugged her friend and he weakly tried to hug her back.  
  
"My Mom! Is she okay?" he said, suddenly trying to sit up. "And someone should check on your Mom and Abby," he said.  
  
Kim put a hand on his chest to ease him back down. "She's fine. Everyone's fine because of you. See? She's right there in the window. She hasn't left your side. I'll go get her," Kim said, as she left to bring in Mrs. Caffey.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Bosco and Faith had finished processing their prisoner and turned him over to the lock-up for the night. Bosco had called the dispatcher to have him advise Thompson to be on the look-out and that they'd be there as soon as they could.  
  
They pulled up outside of Mrs. Zambrano's house and it was completely dark. "That's odd," Faith thought out loud at the same time Bosco thought the same thing.  
  
"Yeah. Knowing that this idiot's out there, you'd think they'd have all the outside lights on at least. And, where's Thompson?" Bosco said as they both looked around. Bosco put the car in park and they got out. 


	49. Chapter 49

Chapter 49-  
  
"You smell." Kim said wrinkling her nose at Jimmy.  
  
"I smell? Thank you very much for that Kim. I risk my neck to save Bobby and all you can say is that I smell." Jimmy smiled to let Kim know he didn't mean it.  
  
"I'm sorry. How's this? Thank you for saving my best friend's life. By the way you need a shower."  
  
"Much better, thank you." Jimmy grinned then looked at the doctor. "So can I go?"  
  
"Yeah. Come back for a wound check but I think that'll heal fine." The doctor said taking off his gloves. "We admitted Mr. Caffey to medicine just for the night."  
  
Kim nodded. "Yeah I know. He was bitching about it all the way upstairs."  
  
"Does this mean I can take Kim and our kids home?" Jimmy interrupted.  
  
"Absolutely. I'll discharge you and you can be on your way." The doctor left.  
  
"Anxious?" Kim asked, coming to stand in front of Jimmy.  
  
"A little. I wanna have that talk with you Kim."  
  
"Tonight? I am so tired right now."  
  
"Not tonight, tomorrow. Your mom can watch Joey and Charlie and we can go for a walk or something."  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Yeah." Kim nodded. "But for now, let's just go home."  
  
"Sounds good to me." Jimmy smiled. He got off the gurney and followed Kim out of the room.  
  
(#(#(#(#(#(#(#(  
  
"I don't like this Bos." Faith said as they got to the front door. There was no sign of Thompson and there was no movement from inside the house.  
  
"Yeah neither do I." Bosco said before he knocked on the door. To his surprise the door opened. He immediately spoke into his radio. "Dispatch this is 5-5-David. Requesting back-up at 5-7-5 East Grand St."  
  
"10-4 5-5-David. Backup is enroute."  
  
"10-4." Bosco said. "Should we go in?"  
  
"Yeah." Faith said nodding. She drew her gun and Bosco pushed the door open. They carefully entered and looked around. "Bos? Hit the lights."  
  
A moment later the lights came on. "Hey Faith?"  
  
"I see it."  
  
A lamp was shattered on the ground alongside a chair that had obviously been pushed aside considering it was on its side.  
  
"No. Listen."  
  
So she did. A few moments went by and she heard it. A soft whining sound.  
  
"The closet." He said. He and Faith moved into position and with a nod Faith opened the door.  
  
Catherine Zambrano fell out. She was bruised and bound on the floor.  
  
"Oh God." Faith said as Bosco screamed into his radio for a bus.  
  
(#(#(#(#(#(#(  
  
"You're being quiet."  
  
"Just tired." She smiled when she felt him touch her hair. She looked over at him. "I cannot wait to get into bed."  
  
"Me neither."  
  
"Jimmy." Kim rolled her eyes.  
  
"You know what I mean."  
  
"Not gonna try anything?"  
  
"Would it get me anywhere?"  
  
"Hmm. No." Kim smiled.  
  
"Didn't think so."  
  
"Jimmy."  
  
"What?"  
  
"There's an ambulance at my mother's house."  
  
"Oh God." Jimmy stopped the car, told Joey to stay put, locked the doors, and followed Kim as she ran down the street.  
  
"Bosco?" Kim called.  
  
The cop looked up. "Kim."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"It's your mom."  
  
"What?" Kim looked past him to where Doc and Alex where. "Oh my God. Mom." She took a step forward and that was the last thing she remembered before everything went black. 


	50. Chapter 50

Chapter 50  
  
Kim heard the voices first. She heard Jimmy saying, "What do you mean you can't find her?"  
  
She heard Bosco reply, "Jimmy, we've got every available officer out looking for this guy. Ty and Sully came back in to work and they're on their way over here also. Even the medics are on the alert. Doc, Alex and Carlos have come back in to look also."  
  
And then Faith, "Kim? Kim? Can you hear me? There you are," she said as Kim slowly opened her eyes. "You gave us quite a scare. How are you feeling?"  
  
"My Mom. Where is she? Where's Abby. Are they alright?" Kim asked in rapid succession, not allowing anyone to give her an answer. Jimmy heard that she was awake and immediately came to her side.  
  
"Kim, honey? Are you okay?" he asked, taking her hand in his. "Doc checked you over and said you just passed out, but I want you to take it easy," he finished, motioning Doc over to check on her again.  
  
"Jimmy, what's going on?" she asked him urgently.  
  
"Well, when Bosco and Faith got here, there were no lights on in or outside the house. They found Thompson out back. He's gonna be okay, but he's out of commission for a while. They found a place at the back of the house where he got in. He must have drawn Thompson's attention to the back and then surprised him," Jimmy was explaining when Kim interrupted him.  
  
"Jimmy! Mom and Abby! Where are they? Are they okay?" she asked him again.  
  
"Kim, your Mom is at Mercy. She's gonna be okay, she's just banged up a bit. Bosco and Faith found her tied up in a closet. But," he said, hesitating for a moment. "We don't know where Abby is right now." He saw the anguish rise in her face and quickly added, "But, everyone's out looking and WE ARE going to find her," he finished.  
  
"Oh my God," Kim said. "This is all my fault."  
  
"What?" Jimmy said. "Kim, how could ANY of this be your fault?"  
  
"Jimmy, don't you see. If I'd never left, we'd all still be together and everyone would be safe. I would have been here to keep Melanie away from Tony," Kim said, always the one to mother everyone. "Bobby's mother would still have her house, Bobby wouldn't be in the hospital, Mom wouldn't be in the hospital and Abby would be safe," she said starting to cry. Jimmy held her close when she suddenly pulled away. "Where's Joey and Charlie?!" she said loudly looking around for them.  
  
"My brother came to get them," Faith said. "Joey has my nephew to play with and my sister-in-law loves getting her hands on babies. They'll be fine. Plus, Stanley has no tie to you or Melanie whatsoever so Tony will never find them," she added. Kim looked at Jimmy.  
  
Jimmy nodded and said to her quietly, "Kim, they're fine this time. Stanley and his family are really nice people. They'll take good care of them. And, its just until we get Abby back and put Tony behind bars," Jimmy assured her. Kim relaxed slightly, but knew she wouldn't completely relax until her relatives and children were safe from this psycho.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Tony knew he couldn't go back to his apartment, so he got a motel room for the night. Abby was sound asleep again and he had time to think of what he was going to do. He had to make plans on how to get out of New York City with her. She only knew him as Daddy, so that wouldn't be a problem. People would just think that the little girl was all her father had left. "That may happen yet," he thought to himself as he thought of ways that he'd like to be rid of Melanie AND her family. 


	51. Chapter 51

Chapter 51-  
  
Jimmy rolled over in the small bunk he was currently sharing with Kim. It took his partially unconscious brain a few seconds to realize he was alone in bed. He opened his eyes and lifted his head. He just saw a few of the guys from the day shift sleeping in the beds around him. Other then that the room was empty. He got out of bed and pulled on some jeans. Yawning he went to the stairs. He listened and could hear a couple of the paramedics laughing down in the kitchen. He figured Kim probably wasn't down there so he went up the stairs instead. Once he reached the roof he looked around.  
  
"You're supposed to be sleeping." He heard from behind him.  
  
He turned and saw Kim sitting in a beach lounge chair. "So are you."  
  
"Couldn't quite manage it. I think Lombardo's snoring has gotten worse." She kidded. She pulled her knees up and left Jimmy a space to sit at the end of the chair.  
  
He took it. "Did you sleep at all?"  
  
"A little. At least I think I did. I'm not sure."  
  
"How long have you been up here?"  
  
"I watched the sun come up." She admitted.  
  
Jimmy nodded. "You gotta sleep Kimmy."  
  
"I know. I just can't make it happen."  
  
"Well first, you gotta relax a little."  
  
"Easier said then done." She tilted her head and smiled sadly at him. "Has anyone called?"  
  
"No." Jimmy shook his head. "Get up for a minute."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Just trust me."  
  
Kim eyed him for a moment but she got up. Jimmy took her seat and she frowned. Then he patted the space in front of him and Kim sat down with her back to him. She smiled a minute later when Jimmy started to rub her back. He'd done this a lot when she was pregnant with Joey. Her back had killed her most nights back then and Jimmy doing this had always helped her fall asleep.  
  
Jimmy felt more and more of the tension leave Kim's body as she relaxed. He brought her back to lean against his chest. Kim scooted back so that she was a little more comfortable and Jimmy put his arms around her. She rested her head against his shoulder. He felt her shiver a little.  
  
"Do you wanna go inside?"  
  
"No. I like it out here."  
  
Jimmy nodded. "We can stay here as long as you like."  
  
*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*  
  
"Here ya go Sully." Ty said handing his partner a cup of coffee.  
  
"Thanks. Did you get the paper?"  
  
The younger man held up a newspaper by way of an answer.  
  
"Anything in there about Kim's niece?"  
  
"Yeah." Ty pointed to a picture of Abby and one of Tony. "There's a phone number. Hopefully someone will call."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Man, I can't even imagine what Kim must be feeling right now." Ty commented. "I'd go nuts if my brother-in-law took off with one of my nieces or nephews."  
  
"I just wanna find this guy so that when Zambrano's sister becomes more coherent we can tell her that her daughter is okay. This guy gives cops a bad name." Sully said.  
  
"We getting any help from the 2-5?" Ty asked.  
  
"Some. He may have beaten the hell out of Brooke but there's still that code of honor."  
  
"Honor is not a word I'd apply to this guy." Ty said as he got in the car.  
  
"Me neither." Sully agreed quietly. 


	52. Chapter 52

Chapter 52  
  
Kim had just gotten off the cell phone with Joey. The police had asked them not to go to Faith's brother's house to see the kids in case Tony was watching them. They didn't want to lead him right to Kim's kids. Faith had stopped over last night and spent some time with the kids for Kim. She told Kim that they were doing great and that her nephew and Joey had become friends quickly. Charlie was completely spoiled and she apologized for her sister-in-law. Kim had just told Faith how much she and Jimmy appreciated them taking their kids in on such short notice and under the dangerous circumstances.  
  
Jimmy came in behind Kim as she stared out the window. "Hey you," he said walking up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. "That mess in the other room and the closet is all cleaned up. Who was on the phone?" he asked, kissing her on the side of her neck.  
  
Kim closed her eyes at the feel and smell of him. "It seems like I fall more and more in love with him everyday," she thought to herself.  
  
"Oh, it was Joey - and sort of Charlie," Kim answered him with a chuckle as she thought about the nonsense sounds that Charlie was making into the phone at the sound of her voice. "The kids are getting along great and Faith told me that her sister-in-law is spoiling Charlie rotten. That ought to be fun to undo," she said jokingly. "I just wish we could find Abby and get her back here safe and sound. Do you think that Tony will hurt her?" Kim said, the knot in her stomach returning at the thought.  
  
Jimmy held her closer to him, "I hope not, Kimmy. But, you know him better than I do. I've never met him."  
  
Kim looked up at the clock and unfolded herself from Jimmy's arms. She walked over to the stove to check on dinner and Jimmy watched her every move. God, how he wanted her. How could he have been so stupid in the past? How could he have thrown all of that away?  
  
"So, how was Melanie and your Mom today?" Jimmy asked her as he went to the cabinet to finish getting out the dishes for the table.  
  
"Melanie's doing a lot better. Mom was discharged, but she's refusing to leave Mel's side. We finally had to tell her about Abby today," Kim said, suddenly sad. "She saw a report on the television. She didn't take it very well. They had to give her something to calm her down. It helped that Bobby was there."  
  
"I'm sorry," said Jimmy. "I'll try to stop by if I get in there during work tomorrow," he said, which reminded Kim that he had gone back to work full-time. She nodded and he knew that she wasn't sure she wanted him back to work while this whacko was still out on the street. "Who knew what he'd try to do next?" she thought to herself.  
  
"Be careful," she said simply.  
  
"Always am," Jimmy said, avoiding her glare in response to that.  
  
"Yeah, and there IS a Santa Claus," she teased.  
  
"You mean there ISN'T?" he answered back. She threw the wooden spoon at him that she'd been using to stir the pasta with.  
  
"Oh, now you're in for it. That's assault with deadly force. I could have gotten a sliver or something," Jimmy said, grabbing the spoon off the floor and chasing her around the kitchen and out into the living room. He caught up to her and grabbed her around the waist, pulling her onto the couch on top of him. He used the spoon to paddle her and she turned to try to get away from him and found herself face to face with him.  
  
They both paused and each felt the warmth of their feelings begin to take over them. Kim dipped her head toward Jimmy and their lips met and they shared a long, meaningful kiss. They each came up for air and Jimmy said, "Kim," He knew she wanted to get things straight between them before anything went too far. He didn't want her to regret anything.  
  
"Shut up, Doherty," Kim said as she leaned in for another kiss. She felt his touch on the back of her neck as his other hand slid around to the small of her back. He pulled her closer and the heat of her passion rose further. Their hands were all over each other, as if they were discovering each other for the first time. She felt his desire for her as she lay on top of him and she sat up and removed her shirt. Jimmy took in the sight of her as if seeing her for the first time. She slowly unbuttoned his shirt and he helped her to get it off of him. Jimmy stood up and took Kim by the hand and they made their way to the bedroom to continue their explorations. After an hour, they were peacefully asleep entangled among the sheets when they were awakened by the sound of the smoke detector. Kim jumped up quickly.  
  
"Oh my God! Dinner!" she said as she grabbed her robe and ran toward the kitchen. Jimmy quickly caught up to her and there they looked at the fabulous dinner that Kim had spent the better part of the afternoon preparing- burned beyond recognition.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Sully and Ty had just called back in service after their dinner break and were out looking in the area that they'd first seen Tony that night at the bar. They were hoping to get lucky again, but it was looking bleak.  
  
"I can't believe that he could just get away with her," Ty said. "I mean, they put out an Amber Alert as soon as we found out. How far could he have gotten?"  
  
"I don't know, Davis. But, I think we'll get lucky. We have to," he said as they turned down yet another darkened street.  
  
They were interrupted by the radio, "Central to 55-Charlie."  
  
"Charlie," answered Davis.  
  
"55-Charlie, contact the Lieutenant ASAP regarding Item 1 from roll call," came the response.  
  
Sully and Ty both got a rush of adrenaline as they realized that the dispatcher was talking about the information given out about Abby at roll call. It was decided not to discuss it over the radio, as they didn't know if Tony had a scanner or not.  
  
"10-4 Central," Ty responded as Sully pulled over to the curb. Ty took out his cell phone and handed it to Sully as he was the senior officer. Sully dialed the number for the Precinct and was put through to Lt. Swersky.  
  
"Sully, we got a call from a woman at 5207 Arthur. She wouldn't leave her name, but said that she thinks she rented a room to Tony. She said he had a little girl with him," he said. "We're sending the detectives over, but I want you there for back-up. If you see him and sense that the girl is in any danger, by all means, take him yourself," he finished.  
  
"Okay, Lieu. We're about three blocks away. We'll set up out of sight and wait for the detectives unless we see him first," Sully said hanging up the phone. He handed the phone back to Ty and said, "5207 Arthur. Possible sighting." 


	53. Chapter 53

Chapter 53-  
  
"Pizza's not a bad second choice all things considered." Jimmy said as he picked up a piece of pepperoni.  
  
Kim smiled. "Is that your way of trying to make me feel better about burning our dinner?" She got up to get herself a soda.  
  
"Yes, considering it was partly my fault."  
  
"Partly? You did some major distracting buddy." She said as she stood in front of him.  
  
"Yes but I was equally distracted." He said looking up at her.  
  
"Really?" Kim smiled. "Anyone I know?"  
  
"Yeah I think you might know her." Jimmy grinned, his dimples showing. He took Kim's hand and pulled her into his lap. "She's this amazing woman. Blonde hair, good body, and the best part is that she's the mother of my children."  
  
"Sounds like a good woman."  
  
"She's the best. I screwed up with her a long time ago but I think I'm going to be given a second chance to make things right with her."  
  
"Well if it's who I'm thinking about, she's willing to give it another shot if you are."  
  
"Seriously?" Jimmy asked, dropping the act.  
  
"Yeah." She nodded. "Jimmy, I meant what I said the other night on the phone. I do love you. I think I always have. Maybe that's part of the reason I took off, I'm not sure. I do know that I did want to give you and Brooke a fair shot of making it."  
  
"What happened with Brooke and me would've happened no matter where you were. You know that, right?"  
  
"Yeah. You know when you got hurt and I went to New York, the minute I saw you, this part of my brain that I'd refused to acknowledge for so long just screamed at me that if you'd known about Charlie, you would've been there, no matter what."  
  
"Well your brain was right."  
  
Kim nodded and then she giggled a little.  
  
"What?"  
  
"The voice that was screaming at me? It sounded like you."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"Who knew I was so wise?"  
  
"Certainly not me." Kim smiled.  
  
"Me neither."  
  
^#^#^#^#^#^#^#^#^  
  
"You wanna knock or should I?" Ty asked Sully.  
  
"Your turn."  
  
Ty nodded and then knocked on the door.  
  
"Yeah?" came a voice from the other side.  
  
"Room service."  
  
"I didn't order anything."  
  
"Well sir, I have an order for this room number and if I don't collect some money or a signature I'm gonna be in big trouble, so could you open up? Maybe we can figure out who this does belong to." Ty said as he and Sully stood on opposite sides of the door.  
  
"Fine, hold on." The man grumbled as he opened the door. He stepped into the doorway.  
  
"Freeze!" Sully said to him.  
  
Tony froze. "What's going on here?"  
  
"You're under arrest." Sully told him as Ty went into check for Abby.  
  
"On what charges?"  
  
"Breaking and entering, assault on two police officers, not to mention Catherine Zambrano and her daughter, and kidnapping."  
  
"Kidnapping? She's my daughter." Tony said.  
  
"Yeah and you nearly killed her mother." Sully said. "So, you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say, can and will be used against you in a court of law." He said as he put the cuffs on Tony.  
  
^#^#^#^#^#^#^#^#^  
  
Kim picked up the phone about an hour later. "Hello?"  
  
"Kim? It's Faith."  
  
"Everything okay?"  
  
"Yeah. How'd you like to come down and get your niece?"  
  
"What?" She said excitedly. "Jimmy! Get in here!" She said loudly before going into the phone, "Is she okay?"  
  
"She's fine. I'm gonna go get your kids and bring them to Mercy. The doctors are checking Abby out right now and they said you'd probably be able to take her home tonight."  
  
"Kim?" Jimmy appeared in the doorway.  
  
"They found Abby. We can go get her and our kids."  
  
"Yes!" He ran and picked Kim up off the ground as he spun her around in a circle.  
  
"Faith, we'll see you soon." Kim said before she hung up. "It's over. This whole mess is finally over."  
  
"Thank you God." Jimmy smiled. 


	54. Chapter 54

Chapter 54  
  
Kim and Jimmy walked down the hallway toward Melanie's room and saw Catherine Zambrano sitting in the hallway with a smug smile on her face.  
  
"Mom? What's up?" asked Kim, smiling back. "I take it you've heard the good news."  
  
"What good news?" Catherine asked her.  
  
"Faith called me. They found Tony. He's in jail and he's not getting out. She and Bosco are on their way here with Abby, Charlie and Joey," Kim explained, watching her mother's face light up even more.  
  
"That's fantastic. You should go in and tell Melanie. No one has told her yet either, but you may want to wait a few minutes," Catherine said, again with the smile.  
  
"Wait? Why? I'd think she'd want to know this right away," Kim said, glancing over at Jimmy with a confused look on her face.  
  
"Well, Bobby's in there with her. They have really gotten quite close during all this. I think they're good for each other," Catherine said.  
  
"Ahhh. I see," said Kim. "Well, I think that this news warrants an interruption," Kim said and she took Jimmy's hand and walked into her sister's room.  
  
They stood in the doorway, trying not to laugh as they watched Bobby and Melanie kissing as if they were two kids behind the bleachers of the football field. "Ahem," Jimmy finally cleared his throat, breaking up the session.  
  
"Hey! Kim, Jimmy!" said Bobby as he came over and shook Jimmy's hand. "How's everything going? Any news?" he asked.  
  
"Well, as a matter of fact," Kim started, walking over to her sister. "Tony's in jail and will be for quite some time. Abby's fine. As a matter of fact, Faith and Bosco are bringing her over here right now," she finished, seeing her sister's eyes light up and release their fear and tension.  
  
"Oh, thank God," Melanie said as Bobby came over and took her hand. "And the doctor said that I can finally get out of here. What a great day this is turning out to be," Melanie said, looking up at Bobby and then over to Kim and Jimmy.  
  
All four of them heard a noise behind them and turned toward the door in time to hear, "Mama," from Abby as Catherine brought her into the room.  
  
"Abby!" Mel exclaimed, holding her arms out to grab her. She took hold of her and held her tight, until the child began to squirm. "Abby, I missed you so much. I love you."  
  
"Mama booboo?" Abby asked quietly, suddenly a little scared of her surroundings.  
  
"Mama's fine now, Abby. I'm coming home today," she said, calming any fears the child had.  
  
"Um, actually, Melanie," came Bosco's voice from the doorway. Bosco and Faith were standing in the doorway with Joey and Charlie and Kim and Jimmy immediately went over to take their kids into their arms and welcome them home.  
  
"We took a report from your neighbor about a break-in at your apartment building. Apparently Tony went over there and trashed the place looking for you and Abby. I guess when he found you weren't there he went a little nuts and destroyed pretty much every room," Bosco explained.  
  
"Yeah, the landlord is starting to have the repairs made, but it's gonna be a little while until you can live there again," Faith added. "So much for that security deposit," she kidded, trying to lighten the mood a little.  
  
"Oh," Melanie said, not really knowing what to do next. She knew that Kim, Joey and Charlie were staying with her mother and that Bobby and his mother were living at a hotel since the fire, so she didn't really know where she'd stay. "I guess I'll have to look at apartments," she said uncertainly.  
  
"Not at all," Jimmy piped up as Kim looked at him. He looked over at Kim as if asking her permission to make the announcement and she nodded yes.  
  
"Kimmy, Joey and Charlie will be coming to live with me. She'll be calling the hospital in Chicago to give her notice and then use her two weeks vacation time up," he said, taking in the smiles on everyone's faces. "So, that frees up your Mom's house for you to recuperate in and if you need any help at all from us, you know you got it." He finished.  
  
"Yeah, well I'm gonna be around to help out too," Bobby announced, looking at Melanie with love. "I talked to Doc yesterday and he said anytime I want my job back, it's mine. And I checked at my old building and there's an apartment open so Mom and me will be staying there until they figure out if her house can be fixed or not."  
  
Everyone congratulated Kim and Jimmy and Joey was thrilled. Abby and Charlie sat on the empty bed in Melanie's room, with the side rails up and played with each other as everyone caught up on everything. 


	55. Epilogue

Epilogue- 2-½ years later-  
  
"Excuse me? Excuse me, can I have everyone's attention please?" Doc said trying to get everyone's attention. It wasn't an easy task but finally the room quieted down. "Thank you. Now, Alex, Joe, and Mrs. Zambrano and Mrs. Caffey organized this little party for two very special reasons. None of them are to hot on making speeches though so they elected me to get up here and tell you. One of them, I think you already know. It was two years ago tonight that we came together at the house and watched Kim and Jimmy make it legal once again after a long road. To the two of you, keep going. Make it to fifty this time."  
  
A general cheer rose up among the guests and a few groans when Kim and Jimmy kissed.  
  
"Okay, Lombardo. Get the crowbar." Doc kidded. "And if that doesn't work, Carlos get the cold water."  
  
Laughter could be heard as Kim and Jimmy parted and laughed as well.  
  
"Now, for the other reason. I'm sure most of you know about it but in case you don't I'm going to tell you. After quite a few nights of being down on his knees Bobby Caffey has finally gotten Melanie Zambrano to say yes to marrying him."  
  
Cat calls and cheers could be heard from the assembled group, which included Bobby's sisters, the guys from the house, assorted family members from Kim and Melanie's side and Jimmy's side, some cops from the 5-5, and of course, Joey, Charlie, and Abby.  
  
"Now, I'd like to ask the bride-to-be's sister to come on down. As 'best person' I think it's your job to say a few words" Doc said.  
  
"Oh boy." Kim murmured.  
  
"Go on baby." Jimmy whispered.  
  
"Here goes nothing." Kim took Doc's place and then a deep breath. "I'm gonna keep this short since I wanna save all my words of wisdom and embarrassment for the actual wedding. To my best friend and my sister, I wish you both all the happiness in the world because God knows you both deserve it. I love you. Cheers."  
  
"Cheers." The room resounded and Kim went and sat back down next to Jimmy.  
  
"So what words of embarrassment are you saving for the wedding?" Bobby asked with a grin.  
  
"Nothing to horrible, I hope." Melanie said. "That is unless you want me to tell Jimmy about that time in high school."  
  
"What time in high school?" Jimmy asked curiously.  
  
"Nothing honey. Mel, be quiet."  
  
"Or we could tell him about the time you got elected flight nurse." Bobby teased.  
  
"Flight nurse? They got you up in a helicopter?" Jimmy asked.  
  
"Yeah they did. Never again."  
  
"That must have been something to see." Jimmy smiled.  
  
"It was." Bobby said. "They had to carry her off in a gurney when they landed."  
  
"They did not. Do not listen to him." Kim said. "Let's dance."  
  
"Hey wait, I wanna hear this." Jimmy jokingly protested as he got up to follow Kim  
  
"No you don't." Kim said as Jimmy wrapped her arms around her and they swayed.  
  
"A gurney?"  
  
"Total exaggeration. I just needed some valium." Kim said with a grin. "And a promise that they never send me up in that thing again."  
  
"How bad was it?"  
  
"My knees wouldn't move when I saw it." Kim giggled.  
  
Jimmy laughed with her.  
  
"Look over there." Kim nodded.  
  
Jimmy took a look in the direction Kim indicated. "Oh man."  
  
"I think it's sweet."  
  
"She's four."  
  
"Exactly. It's not like she's in a position to go out with the kid." Kim said. "And it's Lombardo's kid so be grateful. Bosco could've procreated and it could be his kid."  
  
"That's not funny although he and Faith do seem to be getting serious."  
  
"I'm glad for them. Especially Faith. She deserves it after everything that happened." Kim said looking over at the two. "Well as long as we're not the ones whose offspring will have to deal with them."  
  
"But a niece or nephew might have to."  
  
"Hey, did I tell you? Tony finally signed the papers."  
  
"That's great. So they're gonna go ahead with the adoption?"  
  
"Yep." Kim looked over at her sister and Bobby. Their heads were bent together. "They look so perfectly happy right now."  
  
"I'm just glad Melanie finally said yes."  
  
"Yeah me too. She deserves it. So does he."  
  
"So do we."  
  
"Oh but we already have it." Kim said with a smile. "Happy Anniversary Jimmy. I love you."  
  
"I love you too." 


End file.
